Here In My Arms
by Platinumsabr
Summary: What laid in wait past Anti-Thesis? A choice. What lay in wait past the choice? Consequences. A future...with who? Decisions, decisions, some not up to me, show me the truth, what I'm meant to be... Rated M for lemon content.
1. Confession

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Rosario+Vampire, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story. Simple enough, ne?

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**Here In My Arms**

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Where had the time gone?

It seemed like only yesterday he and his friends had been battling an unknown multinational corporation bent on God-knows-what, and now they were in their last year at the beloved Youkai Academy. A place that had once terrified him had become tolerable thanks to one very special person, and over time he gained more friends, more experiences, until it came to the point where in some part of his mind Tsukune Aono began associating the inhumanly creepy institution with 'home.'

There were so many different meanings to that single word, but the phrase, 'home is where the heart is' came to mind instantly.

It was ironic really. His first day at the seemingly normal school he had been the same as any other student, or so he had thought, and soon after it was revealed to him just how grossly out of place he was. If one had tried to summarize his person in any one word before he had entered that damnable establishment it would have been quite easy.

Normal.

Average.

_Unspectacular._

The list of synonyms went on and on. He had been, like most freshmen his age, absolutely unassuming. His grades were okay, his athleticism was common at best, there was nothing overly special about his appearance, and he had about as much ability to attract the opposite sex as a mountain hermit around women for the first time. Apparently, the latter was part of the _or so he had thought_ category.

One encounter on the very first day of his new life at his new school changed the course of his completely _ordinary_ fate to that of something _extraordinary_. It was really that simple; from the moment he met—collided with—the girl who redefined the word beauty, everything changed for one Tsukune Aono. Suddenly the boy who stood out as much as sand in a sandbox, the teen that had never been very popular at any time in his life, started gaining friends.

That one word is used so casually so often, but it did so little justice in his mind to classify the people close to him. He'd seen friendships based on appearance, similar interests, even proximity, but what he had with his friends went far beyond that. It always started out simply enough, or what could be called simply enough for him. After he entered Youkai Academy _simple_ suddenly took on new meaning for the young man. It started out _simple_, finding enough leeway to warrant continued presence around him, and soon spiralled until he was fighting battles of convictions, battles of life and death, for their safety and ideals. They had a bond of _blood_ thicker than any fickle friendship, and what made _that_ all the more difficult was that most of them were _women._

Fate had taken one look at the cards it had dealt the young man and nearly killed itself laughing, he was sure of that. The one person barely able to stutter out two words to the opposite gender, and turned bright cherry red whenever confronted with anything of the sexual realm, had been given not one, not two, but _five_ females as his best friends. It didn't help that four of them were outrageously attractive in every right, and that the fifth had a mind as dirty as it was intelligent. _She_ would be a force to be reckoned with when she got older, and she was already hard to deal with now as it was.

But no, not even that had been enough. _That_ might have been reasonable, _that_ any average person like him might have been able to get used to after a while. No, Fate had decided like the abusive, maniacal mistress she was, to make the school he was going to be for _monsters_. From the second young fifteen-year-old Tsukune's first footprint was embedded in the soil of the hidden realm, he had been the weakest, most vulnerable being there could possibly be. It was no far stretch to say a toddler in that realm could have broken every bone in his body with relative ease.

Then again, Fate had been merciful, because who should he first meet but the most beautiful, most _powerful_ student on campus. Of course, that had been the beginning of many of his problems right of the bat, those of the life-threatening variety. People—or Ayashi as they liked to be called—drawn to her would inevitably seek to harm the insignificant whelp she always hung around, or on, as the case usually was.

Before long he had soon met a succubus more than powerful enough in her own right, with a personality and physique to match; a young witch with an intelligence quotient only comparable to her perverted mind and desire to be loved; an oddball snow woman who somehow managed to synch her ethereal beauty to her unusual choice in clothing and habits; and an older witch who against all odds had done the impossible and managed to out-fetish her younger counterpart.

They became his friends, they became his _lifelines_ in a world not meant for the definition of mediocrity that was himself. Just because he knew he was weak, that didn't make it hurt any less. Though it was so stereotypically male, it hurt both his pride and his heart that he, the one man among them, couldn't do anything to protect the ones he cared about. _Her_ most of all.

Moka Akashiya.

The girl who had first run him over with her bike, the one with endless emerald eyes and a sea of candy pink hair, the one no-one would suspect could hurt a _fly_ let alone another person, was anything _but_ mediocre. Her grades were exceptional, her appearance the likes of which came around once every several generations, and her appeal, her natural magnetism? He had fallen instantly and hopelessly in love. He was used to being a failure, being average, someone who didn't have many friends as a given. He had considered it a crime that someone as naturally gifted as her had been so desperate for a friend that she had considered _him_ of all people as a good candidate.

Of course, something too good to be true, usually isn't. She wasn't without her own strings attached. Whom he had first thought human, was the farthest thing from. The nightmarish realm into which his father had unwittingly thrust him was pounded home when the undeniably cute young woman had sunk her _fangs_ into his neck mere seconds after their meeting. At first glance he would have never suspected the girl who looked about as threatening as a kitten had enough strength even in her sealed form to crush solid concrete.

Even as a monster, she was singled out.

Not only was she a monster, but the _pinnacle_ of monsters, an S-Class Super Vampire. Set above the rest, constantly aware of her superiority in every respect, it had become too much for the young vampire. So desperate had she been for a friend, she had even hoped to find one in human schools. Split into her 'Inner' and 'Outer' forms respectively thanks to the Rosario ever-present on her black choker, Tsukune didn't find the form she had taken when sealed surprising at all, not after getting to know her.

'Outer' Moka was everything 'Inner' Moka was not: openly caring and compassionate, soft-spoken, 'cute' more than 'beautiful.' She personified everything she thought she lacked that kept her from gaining friends, and sealed the mature, jaded vampiress inside. It had the unexpected side-effect of creating two separate personalities, both equally Moka yet both fundamentally different. Her insane strength and intimidating beauty was hidden behind soft green eyes and childishly pink hair, which _should_ have allowed those unsettled by her power to get near her. For whatever reason, that wasn't the case, and 'Outer' Moka nearly became as demoralized as 'Inner' Moka. All the sealing had managed to do was turn her into a weakling, and gained her nothing.

Then came along perfectly average, extraordinarily ordinary Tsukune Aono.

He smiled even as he thought of it. It really was ridiculous if he was being completely honest with himself, and yet somehow it had happened.

But time went by, and eventually perfectly average Tsukune Aono began to _hate_ his mediocrity, _hate_ the humanity that made him so weak even compared to the witch four years his junior. Even with all that, he never once resented any of his friends for being stronger than him; the only thing he wanted was to be able to protect them as well. They never failed to get into dangerous situations, he was like a magnet for them, and he supposed it was only inevitable that it had turned out the way it had.

He absentmindedly looked down on his right wrist, where the enchanted chain kept what had now become his true nature in check. He was no longer human, as much as the holy links of metal bound with a seemingly simple lock made it seem. _Human_ blood no longer coursed in his veins, it had gotten to the point that his now black heart pumped utterly vampiric blood through a body now capable of making Youki naturally, _without_ outside interference. He had gained the power he had dreamed of, and the price was of little consequence to him anymore. He could protect those he loved, his humanity could be damned.

Training that power had been hell on earth, what with his goddess' methods, but in all seriousness he could consider himself a vampire now, not a human. _Ghoul_ was the term given, but Ghouls didn't have will, so for all intents and purposes the Holy Lock around his wrist effectively made him a vampire. Where once he had only found belonging through a select group of people, now he had become one of them. Now he really did belong there.

Youkai Academy, the place that had been the starting point of the rest of his life, not even it could truly be called 'home.' Home came in many forms, one caring and courageous, another pure and perverted; one wintry and warmhearted, another meek and masochistic. Where his home truly laid even in the world not originally his own, was in the one yet two. 'Home is where the heart is,' after all, and he had never been able to take his back from the pink-haired—silver-haired—green-eyed—red-eyed—cute—beautiful—woman—vampire—that was Moka Akashiya.

If only he could get up the nerve to tell her how he felt.

It was their last year of school together, the year that decided where he was going to stay. He wasn't a 'boundary being' like Yukari or Ruby, at least not naturally, but that was what he had become. If he got right down to it he knew he didn't belong in the Human World any longer, but if he was to admit that to himself then he didn't know what he'd do. His parents still lived there, they still loved him, he couldn't very well just extricate himself from his family without telling them why, and he wasn't about to do anything stupid like telling them he had died or some such nonsense.

As he looked in the mirror in front of him, it was all too obvious to Tsukune how Time had treated him. He had to attribute some of the changes to what had become _his_ vampire blood, because if anyone had told him he would look like this when he was eighteen he would have laughed in their faces. Wide, once naïve eyes had narrowed on a face finessed through years of development, and where had once stood a scared little boy, now all he saw was an intimidating young man looking back at him, nearly identical to that which he took on when he transformed. His eyes were still kind though, he hadn't lost that, not even after everything he had been through. He couldn't lose his kindness, it was a part of who he was. His dark hair still hung all around his head just like when he was younger, but it had grown enough to nearly cover his eyes if he wanted it to.

His life at Youkai Academy was marked into his body. Where previously the untainted flesh of a minimally athletic boy had been now rested the scarred, strong physique of a trained fighter; someone who had been through more than thought possible and lived. While he was a bit self-conscious about how they made him look, he took pride in each and every one of the scars that riddled his body. Nearly every one of them had been when he was trying to protect someone close to him, though admittedly some of them were from attacks he hadn't been capable of dealing with at the time.

Was it enough? Were the changes he had gone through, the years they had spent together, enough to make her say yes?

Just like everything in his life, it couldn't be simple. There were two aspects of her. Though one had only been created as a side-effect of sealing her intense supernatural power, it was still her, and he loved both sides of her. Outer and Inner didn't matter. He loved Moka Akashiya. The question was, did the 'Inner,' the _real_, Moka, love him as well?

Unfortunately, there was only one way to find out.

…

While he made his way to class, it was funny to see how all the childlike teens he had first met during his first year had developed into young adults. People he barely saw outside of class had grown just as much as he had, and he'd be lying if said he didn't get a little jolt to his selfless ego when a female head turned his way as he walked by. It was always nice to feel appreciated.

He rounded the corner into his classroom…and was promptly pulled downwards into a rather amorous embrace.

"Yahoo~! Good morning Tsuku~~~~~~~ne!

He would have smiled had he not been flailing his arms trying to breathe. That voice—this situation in general—was all too familiar. Still, it wasn't like he could calmly analyze it like his mindset seemed to be today. "K-Kurumu-chan! Can't breathe! Can't breathe!"

Thankfully—or maybe not for her—he was soon released from her grip when his gifted assailant was frozen solid and pulled away. "Cool down, you big-breasted idiot."

_Where_ she had come from Tsukune had absolutely no idea, but god if he wasn't glad she appeared. After sufficiently re-supplying his lungs with oxygen instead of cotton, he looked up gratefully. "Thank you, Mizore-chan."

The way the Snow Woman blushed under his praise or gratitude never failed to make him feel like the consummate idiot for not being able to return her advances. Even Kurumu, who had just broken out of her icy prison, was everything a man could ever wish for in a wife. He silently cursed Fate for making him so damn monogamous, because if he could have more than one of the women he cared for and not feel like a complete and utter dirtbag he would do so in a heartbeat.

Just looking at them was a test of self-control for any hormonal young man. Mizore Shirayuki was the epitome of what most would consider a cool beauty. Stoic face, breathtaking eyes, skin of purest snow white; the untouchable air about her only added to her mystique. Her unusual style was no less attractive than any other of the many deviations from the uniform norm; in fact it fit her so well he had never really commented on it before. She was a porcelain doll hiding a cold capable of freezing Hell itself; a gorgeous woman whose expressionless face seemed like it could break at any moment, yet behind that seemingly fragile exterior lay a warrior able to freeze all but the strongest opponents solid when provoked. The lollipop that never left her mouth was just too endearing, and it was a good thing he had never been asked if he had ever fantasized about what her tongue could do if he ever felt so bold as to kiss her. He had always been a terrible liar.

Kurumu Kurono was sexuality given physical form; Lust incarnate. Just looking at her was often enough to warrant an explosion of blood from the nasal cavity. It wasn't even just that; trapped within her small, busty frame was a heart more kind and courageous than he knew he'd ever be. She still hadn't grown past her old height, and now the older Tsukune Aono found himself more than a head taller than the tiny Succubus, which always made for an amusing sight whenever she pulled him into her cleavage. Her bright sapphire hair and entrancing amethyst eyes had lost none of their previous appeal, in fact as she got older the Succubus girl started looking more and more like the wet dream her race had become associated with. It was never-ending torment for someone like Tsukune.

Why he had to hurt the two visions of beauty in front of him caused him nothing but pain. He loved them, he really did; he would always hold them dear to his heart, but it belonged to someone else. With that came the reason he had been so hesitant to confess to Moka. Openly declaring his love for any one of the girls that were as much rivals in love as they were friends was sure to shatter their friendly camaraderie. Not to mention it was a very real possibility that 'Inner' Moka would reject him, and he could never go back to what he had with his other friends.

_God, this is too much for my heart so early in the morning_, he groaned mentally. This decision really did affect the rest of his life, and putting it off would only make it worse than it was already.

"Good morning Tsukune!"

_Speak of the devil and the devil will come…_

He smiled as he turned around and was greeted rather forcefully when the pink-haired young woman threw herself into his arms, nearly throwing him off-balance in the process. He had long gotten used to his enhanced strength and reflexes however, and was able to keep them from falling to the ground at least.

"Itadakimasu!" the cheery voice called out, and before he knew it the sharp spike of awareness in his neck clued him in to her daily breakfast ritual. In other words: him. He had always wondered why she found his blood so tasty even after he had become a Ghoul, but he supposed even though she had commented on the slight change in taste it was still close enough to what he had had before that she still enjoyed it. It made sense, the vampire blood within him _had_ become his own after all.

"Do you really have to do that right off the bat?" a disgruntled Kurumu asked as the vampire popped her mouth away from her best friend's neck and sighed happily.

At Moka's adorable pout Tsukune almost lost it, though he was feeling rather woozy already. "I-It's okay Kurumu-chan, it if keeps Moka-san healthy I really don't mind."

The Succubus eyed him warily before sighing in defeat. "Fine. It's not like we don't have this conversation every single day." Now he really felt like a heel, but then she batted her long eyelashes at him and snuggled into his side as she exposed her pale, graceful neck to his eyes. "But if Tsukune ever wanted to suck _my_ blood I'd be more than happy to let him!"

That time he _did_ fall down.

It was hard enough dealing with the thirst without being taunted so openly like that! Admittedly, the only blood he wanted was from the pinkette looking down on him with concern all over her cute face, but still, as he picked himself up off the ground from his rather comical face plant, he couldn't help but wonder why Kurumu didn't realize she had just answered her own question. If _she_ would offer him _her_ blood, why wasn't _he_ allowed to offer Moka _his_ blood? He sighed; love was blind and deaf after all. Too bad it wasn't mute too, because damn it was giving him a headache. Every time he looked at Moka it screamed at him to confess, to do something totally against his character and take her in his arms and kiss her breathless.

The possible repercussions of that stayed his hands, but only for now.

"Tsukune-san! Moka-san ~desu!" There was no time to react before the tiny projectile the voice had come from had latched on to his and Moka's waists and pulled them together with the pint-sized witch cuddled between them. "Can we have our threesome today?"

She was swiftly smacked to the floor by an irate Kurumu.

"Owiieee!" she cried as she rubbed the bump on her head.

"Kids shouldn't talk about things like that!"

"You're just jealous!"

"Why you—!"

One of the famous bouts between the two began anew once more, and with a sheepish grin Tsukune rubbed the back of his head before simply walking over to his seat. He didn't want to get caught up in that any more than he had to.

"You look like something's bothering you, Tsukune. You want to talk about it?"

He nearly jumped out of his desk when he saw Moka crouching over in front of him, staring into his eyes innocently. "Gah! N-No Moka-san! Everything's fine!" She was too close! Too close! It was hard enough to restrain himself when she was at arm's length, even harder when she hugged him for her daily meal, but it was absolutely terrible when there was no pretext explaining her closeness.

She looked at him with a pout of disbelief, but acquiesced to his lie nonetheless. "Alright."

Taking a quick look around him to make sure Mizore was still occupying herself watching the other two fight, he grabbed her hand before his mind could stop himself. Moka's face instantly turned scarlet, but it had the desired effect and she stopped. "W-Wait Moka-san," he whispered softly. "A-Actually, I would like to talk to you. M-Meet me alone after school."

The young woman took her hand back from his, holding it against her chest with her remaining one and looking for all the world like her head was going to burst from embarrassment. Mindful of what he was trying to do, she too responded in a small whisper, "Okay, Tsukune."

His fingers clawed at his desk, blunt fingernails scratching noiselessly against the hard wood. Her voice…her voice had sounded so soft and understanding it took all he had to resist hugging her in front of everyone. He loved her, he loved her so much it literally hurt. He wanted to hold her, kiss her, love her. God how he wanted to love her.

He _was_ only human after all. He snickered at that.

Behind him, Mizore Shirayuki's eyes misted sadly.

…

The end of the day had come like a river flash frozen, dripping slowly through the gradual melt and trickling towards that much desired instance.

Studying with Moka had done him worlds of good, but sadly there was one aspect of his life in which Tsukune Aono had remained rather mediocre: his grades. He could probably send a full-size truck flying with a flick of his little finger, he had four women and a girl constantly around him so that meant his appeal had to be improving, but his grades had been and still were rather unimpressive.

_Meh,_ he thought distractedly. _Two out of three isn't bad._

He was currently sitting on top of a gravestone, one of the many that littered the area surrounding Youkai Academy. He wanted to make sure they were far enough away from the rest of the population that if he had to do what he needed to no one would come running instantly. He knew Moka could find him even with how far away he was. Even if he hadn't left her the note telling her where to meet, her inner self would have been able to sense his presence, just like he could sense hers approaching.

It was almost frightening how comfortable he had gotten using his supernatural abilities. Now that he was able to keep the strain on the Holy Lock to a minimum whenever he did, it didn't worry him so much. It was a testament to the strength of the divine metal that even as cracked as all the links were it still held firm.

When Moka appeared from between the trees, clutching his note in one hand and her Rosario in the other, he tried to swallow the mountain that had suddenly situated itself in his throat. How he wished the physical strength the vampire blood granted him also gave him a more debonair demeanor, because even though he had been around so many women for so long he was still an abysmal failure when it came to talking to them alone.

"You wanted to talk, Tsukune?"

He shut his eyes and inhaled heavily as the scent of her body trailed to him downwind. Her soft voice sounded both hesitant and apprehensive, and if he didn't know any better he could even smell _fear_ on her. What on earth did _she_ of all people have to be afraid of! Reopening his warm russet orbs as they honed in on her instinctively, Moka Akashiya had to try as hard as she could to keep the blood in her head.

She would never admit it out loud, but Tsukune had become a very, very handsome human. Unlike her, his raw strength could be seen clearly in his body; hard, masculine sinew hidden underneath his wonderfully fitted white button-up. His growth over the past year hadn't really surprised her; after all, it was a well-known fact that males had a more extended period of growth compared to their female counterparts. She _could_ honestly say that she was surprised by the way his body had refined itself as he grew older however, especially his face. He looked so much like the vampire transformation he turned into when he was younger it was frankly disturbing, but no less desirable. Even with his honey-brown eyes and dark chocolate hair he looked every bit as aristocratic as her unsealed form, and that was saying something.

This might not have been so totally unnerving had she not met his family. His father was nothing spectacular, just another run-of-the-mill Japanese man, just like Tsukune had once been. His mother was an elegant beauty however, and if he had inherited most of her grace she wouldn't have been so offset by his appearance as he grew older. Though that was possible, and likely a factor in his continued refinement, she had to consider the possibility that her vampire blood had a part in it as well. She didn't even know why she was so desperate to explain the changes she had been seeing ever since their second year, but the most probable explanation was she was trying to explain why she felt so physically attracted to him, _more_ than for just his blood.

"Yeah, I did."

She resisted the shiver that crawled down her spine when his low voice finally addressed her. When he didn't stutter he sounded positively alluring. What truly got to the emerald-eyed vampire were those eyes, the eyes she had known for nearly three years. There was a resolve in those gentle orbs, a firmness that bespoke a decision to his being, one that had been silently made in the corridors of his heart. She wanted to ask what, but her suddenly dry throat restricted any words from escaping. Licking her lips nervously at the resolute Tsukune in front of her, she hoped he would continue on his own. She had never seen that look from him before outside of battle, and she could only wonder what it meant.

'Inner' Moka continued to watch silently from the Rosario.

God he really wanted to clutch his palpitating heart. Just saying that first line without his voice cracking had been hard, and his heart was pounding so hard in his chest he was sure she could hear it even all the way over where she was. His palms were sweaty but he kept himself from rubbing them against his pants. He needed her to know how serious he was about this. So he took another breath and readied to continue, heedless of the state of unease his body was in.

Of course, to Moka, this lack of discomfort just made the Tsukune before her that much more desirable, something she had been trying to ignore. The silence between them wasn't awkward, nor was it suffocating; there was a tension there though, one she didn't want to recognize. _He wanted to talk! You need all of your faculties to help him!_ her naïve mindset berated her. Her hormones on the other hand were telling her a completely different story.

"I-I've never done anything like this before," the young man admitted with one of his familiar grins as he rubbed the back of his head, and the friendly gesture in the middle of the unfamiliar situation had warmth bubbling up in Moka's chest. Her Tsukune had never really changed.

Both Moka's became rather alarmed at that.

_Her_ Tsukune? When had he become _her_ Tsukune!

"I-I mean, we talk all the time, and now that we're finally alone my tongue feels like lead! I've gone over this so many times in my head I thought for sure I'd be able to make some sense at least without something or other making me sound stupid!" He coughed there, crimson dusted on his cheeks. "I-I'm rambling aren't I?" She had the sense of mind to nod, though her tongue was feeling rather similar to his, and getting heavier. "O-Okay…well…" He pushed himself off the gravestone he was sitting on and stood to his full height, which inexplicably had the effect of slightly disturbing Moka in this circumstance, even though she knew she was stronger than him and knew just as well he would never hit her.

She was startled out of her stare when her best friend began walking towards her, and for some unexplainable reason she found herself backing away the closer he came. It was only a matter of time she supposed, but that would have only helped her expect the tree trunk she backed into had she been in a right state of mind. The young man before her didn't stop walking, and soon stood right in front of her. It was the first time she could remember being intimidated by his taller frame, and she clasped both hands to her Rosario for assurance.

It would have been so much easier had his eyes looked frightening, had they deceived even the smallest bit of cruelty. No, all she saw in his eyes were love, kindness, the very same things she had come to attribute to Tsukune. They were different this time, and _that_ was what scared her. It just…couldn't be true.

"I don't even know how to begin, so I'll just say it straight out. I love you, Moka-san."

She must not have had as much of his blood as she needed that morning, because it felt like anemia was coming on. Her heart was hammering against her ribs, her fingers and toes were turning numb, even her head felt light. It couldn't be that easy, that simple, could it? Could he have just come right out and said directly what she had longed to hear for so long she couldn't remember? She had to keep a cool head, it was necessary; not because she wasn't affected by his confession, but because she shared a body with another personality, the true form of the body she was in.

As much as it tasted sour on her tongue, she had to voice it. "Which me?"

Tears gathered and fell from her eyes as she saw his expression soften, and he smiled tenderly at her. "I told you long ago didn't I? 'Even if you are a little scary, even if you suck my blood, to me, Moka-san is Moka-san, so it's alright!'" He held up his right arm and scrutinized it carefully before exposing the Holy Lock under his sleeve. "I remember the day I got this like it was yesterday you know. Don't—" he cut her off before she could even speak, when he saw her open her mouth to apologize. "—say anything. Every time I think back only one thing comes to mind. 'To me, the current Moka-san, as well as the Outer Moka-san, are both important to me. That's why I…wanted power to protect Moka-san.' My own words ring louder in my ears than all of your other self's protests. Even today, that thought hasn't changed. You gave me that power Moka-san, the power to fight alongside you. Even if I didn't love you, I could never hate you for that."

"Tsukune…I…I…"

He smiled at her understandingly, and her heart clenched painfully within her. "I know. That's why I'm doing _this_."

Seconds later she looked down in shock at his hands, where a silver Rosario was glistening in the mid-afternoon sun. The change happened instantaneously as her Youki was released from its prison, the very atmosphere around them seemingly changing in response to her extreme power radiating with abandon. Pink hair bled silver, emerald eyes absorbed into reptilian scarlet, her physical body was changed as its true nature was freed and finally Inner Moka stood, fangs gleaming, eyes pained.

A pale, feminine hand—one that bore more power than most Ayashi could even comprehend—reached up, oh so close to his cheek as she looked at him, like she wanted so badly to touch him but just couldn't bring herself to do it. _**"You…have changed much…Tsukune."**_

She was as beautiful as ever. Each silver strand of her hair stood out like metal silk in the light, casting shadows over her unblemished alabaster skin. Even the nondescript school uniform, as dull as ever, was brought to new life on her deific body. Her strong muscles accentuated supple curves not in the least bit hindered by the tone of her body, revealing a woman with such a fierce splendor looking at her really was like walking into the realm of a queen, a goddess.

"Moka-san…"

Her eyes bore true pain as she looked at him, conflicted deep in the core of her soul. He leaned forward slightly, and before she knew what she was doing she had too. Even her arrogance abandoned her in the face of this situation. She had always known he was going to have to make a choice one day, she had even told him he was going to have to make it. It might have been unavoidable, but he had chosen her, and for the first time in his life he had looked her straight in the eyes and _told her_. _Both_ of her.

Their lips were so close, so close she could feel his moist breath against her skin. He had grown into a wonderful man, one that should have looked just as powerful as she needed at her side. Her fluttering eyes closed in pain as she forced her trembling hands up to his chest…

…and pushed him away.

"…_**I can't."**_

Those two words caused him more agony than anything in his entire life combined. He half-expected that little bat to come out of nowhere and give the usual one-second counter. One second. One second, two words, and he had been totally and utterly broken.

The burning sensation behind his eyes grew as the mist of his tears started clouding his vision. "…Why…?" he croaked in despair.

Her face contorted in as much pain as he had ever seen her express physically. _**"I…I just can't. You're…you're human, Tsukune. It's impossible for us to be together. I can't…bring myself to be with you."**_

The tree next to them exploded into a million pieces as his fist struck out to the side. "But I'm _not_ human! I _was_, but I'm _not!_ Not anymore!" If her face expressed sorrow, his expressed the very tortures of Hell, heavy tears falling from a face not suited for them.

"_**But you can never be my equal. I…cannot accept anyone who is not my equal, not even you. You must know your place, just as I must know mine."**_

He fell to his knees, battered more emotionally than even the S-class Super Vampire in front of him could dish out physically. Once more Fate seemed to have laughed in his face. Rejection would have been easier to handle, this was far more than just rejection. She had constantly scolded him, told him one day he'd have to make a choice, and when he finally got up the nerve to tell _her_…she had denied him. Not only had she denied him, she had told him flat out that she could _never_ accept him.

"So that's it?" he whispered hoarsely.

"…_**That's it,"**_ she responded softly. If he didn't know any better he would have thought her voice was just as coarse as his was, but he couldn't bring himself to look at her. She gently removed the Rosario from his hand and stood once more, looking down on the body of what was indisputably a broken man. Turning away, she spared one last glance at the silent form from over her shoulder. _**"I'm sorry, Tsukune."**_

Thick tears falling from red eyes, she sped away from the scene.

…

Far away from the sinister-looking halls of what had been named Youkai Academy, a silver-haired woman collapsed against a tree, throwing the Rosario in her hand off to the side angrily.

She didn't cry. She _never_ cried. She was a proud, powerful Super Vampire; the pinnacle of Ayashi, feared by all. Feared by all but _one_. Fear would have been preferred, but no, this _one_…this one _loved_ her.

She had never known anything could hurt so much. To want something so badly, to have it, right in front of her…and have to discard it. To feel her blood, her heredity, her nature, everything she had ever been taught, rage up inside her, scoffing at its insignificance compared to her. It felt like she had swallowed acid, actually, acid would have tasted good at this point. It felt like she had swallowed Holy Water.

In the face of the confession of the person she cared about most—the one who had stood by her through hellfire and hailstorms, the young man who had refused to leave her side even after everything she had said to him and all they had been through—she had reached into his chest and torn out his heart.

She hated herself, hated the arrogance that made up who she was. She cared about him so much…they _both_ did…so why couldn't she have said yes? The pain soon settled into a dull ache in her chest, not uncomfortable, but never receding. She chuckled bitterly. It seemed she couldn't even mourn for very long before she wrote it off as below her.

If there was a God out there Moka Akashiya prayed then and there that He hated her, because at least then she wouldn't be alone in hating herself. She prayed that Tsukune would finally hate her, that he would finally realize that all further contact with her would do to him was cause him more pain.

But somewhere, somewhere deep in the core of her soul, she prayed that she could love him.

She prayed that he could forgive her.

Looking despondently over at the silver Rosario, she was sure the cross was crying.

"_**I'm sorry. I'm so very…very…sorry."**_

Then she _clinked_ the Rosario back into place on her choker.

An anguished scream tore the air soon after.

…

The days passed by in a blur.

Not even their closest friends dared confront the two, either together or alone. The sheer suffering present on their faces hindered that, like part of their souls had died. It had taken everything Kurumu had to hold out as long as she did, and when she had finally broken down and tried to rush into Tsukune's arms, a cold hand on her shoulder prevented her. She looked over at Mizore questioningly, tears hot on her face, but the Snow Woman simply shook her head silently, and that was all it took.

They knew what had happened, they weren't stupid. Only one thing could cause what they were seeing, and it left a bitter taste in the back of their mouths. Though the thought was definitely there to kill the pink-haired vampire in vengeance, they simply couldn't bring themselves to do it. The look constantly on the young woman's face bore more pain than they could ever inflict.

Tsukune noticed all this, naturally. It was almost ironic, because now he really felt as dead inside as he supposedly was. The first few days he had tried to have lunch with his friends, but he found he couldn't laugh at anything they said, nor could he smile. As he was he was nothing but a burden.

He still couldn't wrap his mind around it. _Why_ couldn't they be together, _why_ did she have to reject him? He could never hate her; as much as he wanted to, as much as he knew he should, prayed he could, he just couldn't hate her. He wasn't made to hate, holding a grudge was for lesser people. So, he had done what came naturally: he hated _himself_.

He had always known he was painfully average, nothing out of the ordinary. Even after gaining the Holy Lock he had worked long and hard to become as strong as he was, but he should have known. He would never add up.

It just didn't make sense! Myths and legends always had some sliver of truth that had sparked their creation! Folklore was exaggerations upon exaggerations usually but there was always, _always_, some hint of truth behind it all. It made no sense that so many humans had been friendly enough with the warring and terrifying race that was vampires in the past as to become injected frequently with their blood! There was no way the legend of vampirism in humans was _all_ Ghoul lore, it just wasn't possible!

He wanted, _needed_, to become a vampire. He had thought he was, at least technically, but technicality was not enough for _her_. His heart ached in his chest every time it beat; his broken heart a very physical ailment that caused him nothing but grief every second longer he lived. It hurt so much…so much…

What humanity was left in him? Other than his mindset, he was no different than a sealed Ayashi. The blood his heart pumped was no longer what he had been born with, now the purest of vampire lifeblood flowed through his body, healed his injuries, strengthened his senses. He had become so accustomed to using his power he didn't even need to think consciously of doing it anymore. What had once been a gamble on his continued consciousness was now nothing more than a thought. He _was_ a vampire. He had spent so long with the blood coursing through his veins he didn't even know where the vampire began and he ended! If not for the Holy Lock…

He stood, new life shining in his eyes for the first time in over a week. A glance around and…class had ended? When had that happened? Life had really become monotonous lately, so much so that he just went through his days, talking to no one, staring at nothing. That ended today.

Fresh purpose filling his limbs, he moved to leave, and was startled when a hand reached out and grabbed his sleeve. It only took an instant to know who it was, her cold hands gave her away. Looking back at her sadly, Tsukune could only wince at the look she wore. Her porcelain face was as expressionless as ever, but her clear blue eyes were heavy with sadness, begging for him to come to her.

"…I'm sorry."

He gently shook his arm from her grip and left the room, leaving the young woman standing there silently.

…

He couldn't keep hurting his friends. They needed him, just like he needed them. For being so selfless, he had been nothing but selfish over the past week and some, and yet he needed to be selfish once more. He couldn't allow himself to go on like this, he needed to know.

Her rejection stung like an infected wound, festering deep in his chest, and even over all the days that had passed he hadn't once looked at her. He couldn't remember looking at much of anything really, but he could feel his friends' pain like it was his own. He couldn't talk to them though, not about what had happened.

As much as they were his friends, they all considered themselves rivals in love. He didn't deserve to talk to them after making his choice. It was his own fault he had been rejected, he wouldn't go crawling back to them. He knew they would pity him, and they would be angry at Moka. He didn't want that.

If he was going to go back to them he was going to go back as the person he was before. If he was going to love one of them the way they wanted him to love them he needed to let them know they weren't a rebound, they weren't a substitute. But he had to know, he had to see…he had to try.

Rain pelted him as he ran through the dead forest with single-minded tenacity, but he couldn't care less. He had always liked rain. Rain brought life, nourished plants, sated the thirst of humans. Too much rain could be destructive, but even then it served the same purpose. Just like fire, rain could also signify rebirth. The only thing he had against rain was that it would hurt someone he cared about if she was left exposed to its onslaught. He sighed. He really was a fool, even now he still couldn't help but care about her.

Standing at the tip of the cliff Mizore often went to when she was depressed, Tsukune let the ocean wind slap against his skin as the waves of the oddly-colored sea crashed wildly against the rocks below. This was his last gamble. If it didn't work, he was no worse off than he had been before. He had been practically undead anyway.

Smiling blithely, Tsukune turned around and spread his arms as he closed his eyes, feeling the full force of nature push against his back, pushing him forward, to the safe ground in front of him. He laughed lightly, which was drowned out in the howling winds of the storm. Fate had never cared about his well-being, but Nature apparently did. He was going to show Fate once and for all that he could defy her whims.

Moving his arms in front of him, Tsukune reopened his eyes to focus in on the cracked links of the artifact on his arm. It seemed so fragile, so weak. His left hand closed in around it. If it worked it worked, if it didn't…at least he was making sure he didn't harm anyone else.

With a mighty yank the lock gave way, just in time for him to see a very wet, very tired Mizore, Kurumu, and Yukari running up out of the forest. They stared at him while they panted for breath…stunned…shocked…at what they were seeing. Their Tsukune was standing before the drop of a cliff…with the now broken chain of the Holy Lock dangling in his left hand.

And he was smiling.

They waited for the malicious Youki to push down on them all, waited long enough in fact they didn't even realize he was slowly falling backwards until he disappeared over the edge.

"TSUKUNE!"

…

Across the plain, through the forest and in one of the characteristically eerie dorm rooms of Youkai Academy, swollen emerald eyes shot open.

"Oh god…please no…"

A Rosario's eye went wide, unconsciously praying the same thing.

…

Sometimes, what people don't realize is that by trying to defy Fate they are actually falling into its plan.

And Fate was not yet done with Tsukune Aono.

…

**Author's Notes:** I wanted to get away from Bleach for a while, so I sat down and started on a fic I'd always wanted to write. This is all based solely on the manga, I watched the first season of R+V and was sick when I found the manga for comparison. The plot, the characters, everything is simply better, no question about it. I watched the first episode of the second season in the blind hope that it followed more of the magnificent plot but alas, it was not to be. As you can see, I set this after Anti-Thesis was defeated because honestly, I'm not gonna mess around with their storyline, I make my own.

'Fate' was just something I chose to put in there, I am by no means emphasizing that humanity has no choice in their actions. I'm sure you all understand what I meant when I chose to use 'fate' to describe certain things in Tsukune's life.

Well, here's the first chapter! I'm sure I left enough for you to come back for more…hopefully.

I hope you enjoyed the chapter!


	2. Release

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Rosario+Vampire, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story. Simple enough, ne? Just don't copy from this story and we're all good!

**.**

**Release**

**.**

_With a mighty yank the lock gave way, just in time for him to see a very wet, very tired Mizore, Kurumu, and Yukari running up out of the forest. They looked at him while they panted for breath…stunned…shocked…at what they were seeing. Their Tsukune was standing before the drop of a cliff…with the now broken chain of the Holy Lock dangling in his left hand._

_And he was smiling._

_They waited for the malicious Youki to push down on them all, waited long enough in fact they didn't even realize he was slowly falling backwards until he disappeared over the edge._

"_TSUKUNE!"_

…

Their world turned red.

With the shock of what they had just seen still fresh in their systems, it was a tribute to their closeness that almost instantly they were all moving, desperately trying to reach the precipice that had just swallowed their friend whole. Kurumu already had her wings sprouted and was seconds away from taking off down after him when it hit her. When it hit _them_. A pillar of bloody light, so thick with power it looked as if one could reach out and touch it, shot out from the base of the cliff and into the heavens above, momentarily blinding the trio.

Then, then their world really _did_ turn red.

The very atmosphere around them warped as the demonic energy surged, painting the stormy skies crimson and shading the rest of the surroundings with a likeness they had only seen happen in the case of one other. Sounds caught their ears, the flapping of hundreds of thousands of leathery wings, and before their eyes what seemed like millions of otherworldly bats flew downwards, rushing after the body they had seen fall not seconds earlier. The roiling waves of moving darkness, screeching insistently as they moved to their target, was unlike anything they had ever seen before. In a way, it was simply awe-inspiring.

What it meant though, they had no idea.

…

Gazing from his room atop the academy classrooms, a robed figure watched the beam of red energy piercing the tempestuous clouds with interest.

**"So, you finally did it eh? It took you longer than I thought."**

He chuckled darkly as he moved back to his desk. No doubt he would have to answer some questions soon. His little assistant had already taken off running the second she felt it.

…

Everything quieted. For those few seconds after the bats had disappeared even the booming thunderheads above seemed frozen in time, though that might have also been because the trio was still momentarily deaf from the explosive shockwave the column of light had created when it appeared. For those ensuing moments there was nothing, no sound, no movement, it could be questioned if they were even _breathing_.

Power.

It came without warning, strong enough in its aura alone to have the three impressively powerful young women shivering against their will. It was a dark power, one that should have been frightening in its very inception, but there was something else there too. It wasn't the twisted, malicious energies released wildly by a Ghoul of a vampire's blood origin; instead it was a pure, burning strength, one the likes of which they had only felt once before. They could only tremble, both shock and exhilaration mounting high in their bodies.

Underneath it all, beneath the terrifying demonic energy and the inherent fear that came with it…was a very familiar presence.

Time returned all at once, returning the scarlet world to normal and breaking the three out of the reverie that lasted only the length of a heartbeat. Then the screams started. It was from none of them, but the pain the voice was expressing was so great it could be heard even over the sounds of the storm, and it was coming from the water below. The power in the air fluctuated wildly, trying desperately to maintain its grandeur and hold off what was causing that pain, but soon sputtered and faltered regardless.

Able to move once more, the screams jolted the friends back to reality. They knew who the screams were coming from, the voice had been ingrained into their hearts for close to three years. Ashamed she had been stopped even though the red light would have surely harmed her, Kurumu quickly took to the skies and dove down to the rocks below.

Mizore and Yukari could do nothing but wait, as hard as it was, and what seemed like an eternity later the tiny Succubus finally pulled herself and her precious cargo back over the edge. They couldn't help it. They stared.

Jagged arcs of bright white electricity were bouncing over a body that was achingly familiar and yet…startlingly alien at the same time. The white shirt common to every student of the academy was pasted to the pale figure it covered, made transparent by water and torn and bloody from the fall, though while they knew that was the case there were no actual wounds to be seen. Glistening wet hair shone like the precious metal it resembled in the flashes of lightning crackling in the dark clouds above, and the muscles hidden under the alabaster skin shook uncontrollably in the constant torture as his fingers clawed at the wet ground beneath him, in what was obviously a vain attempt to alleviate the suffering he was going through. Inhumanly sharp teeth ground together as he struggled to stifle the cries he wanted so desperately to make, and long fangs caught the light as he threw himself to the ground and writhed, trying without success to escape the pain.

"Do something!" Kurumu shouted frantically at her violet-haired companion. "Look at him! He's in pain!"

It didn't take long to realize what she wanted her to do once Mizore finally regained her higher brain functions. Too much time had been wasted already, so the Snow Woman quickly swiped a hand upwards, freezing the water on the ground and in the air into an icy alcove that protected them from the onslaught of nature around them, and the change was instantaneous. Finally free, the young man on the ground collapsed into a panting heap, forcing air into his lungs in large gulps while trying to regain his senses. Just like they thought, when his eyes opened they were not the honey-brown they were used to, rather they were bright red; human pupils nowhere to be found, replaced by their reptilian equivalent.

Tsukune Aono…had become a vampire.

"Are you alright, Tsukune?"

He heard nothing but a garbled mess as his brain fought to work through the torrent of information it had been receiving. Something had changed, he could feel demonic energy swirling inside him; _his_, completely under _his_ control. Then all he felt was pain, unbearable, all-consuming _pain_. It felt like he was being shot, hundreds of times, thousands of times, and it was all because of what he could now recognize had been raindrops. Each one was like a bullet, and the parts of his body immersed in the sea below felt like they were being burned off. If he had thought the initial aftereffect of Moka's blood slowly destroying his humanity during his first year was painful, this experience made that feel like a paper cut. It was like he had bit into a high voltage line in the middle of a thunderstorm and been struck by lightning, multiple times, all at once.

_Is this what Moka-san went through when she saved me from the Swimming Club? Oh god…I deserved that slap even more than I thought…_

But the fact that it was hurting so much meant…it had worked! Straining his uncooperative limbs to rise, he held his arm in front of his face. The alabaster flesh devoid of the Holy Lock looking back at him almost made him shout out in joy. He had been right! He may not be the most book-smart person alive, but he was very gifted when it came to practical applications. Though being out of the rain directly allowed him to breathe easier, his wet clothes caused constant pain and sapped what would have been incredible strength. He wasn't about to strip out of them, as much as he might want to. Present company being the reason.

"Tsukune…are you okay?"

His eyes just barely managed to focus in on Mizore hovering over him, Kurumu and Yukari right by her side. He took another deep breath in to answer them…and instantly regretted it. Their scents filled his senses, the rich, aromatic odor that honed him in instinctively to their heartbeats, pumping that luscious liquid through their bodies. Now that the pain had receded for the most part, he could focus on the other desire flooding through him. _Thirst._ He was so thirsty…so…thirsty…

The girls had been glad to see him returning to normal, or as normal as he could be called now, but when Mizore had called out to him and brought his attention to them, they could see the way his eyes glazed over. Bidden by a longing above his control he moved, and before they could do anything he had sunk his fangs into the Snow Woman's translucent skin.

A soundless scream came from her open mouth as her love-interest drank her lifeblood and her arms stretched to the sky, grasping at nothing before clasping to his back, not in an effort to push him away, but keep him near her. To the other two the blush that instantly appeared on their fellow female's face made their mouths dry, and the way her eyes were rolling back in her head didn't seem to be _all_ from blood loss. Her usually expressionless visage was twisted in _joy_ even. She was shaking, her body trembling against his, and all the while she was showing no sign of discomfort or any real physical _pain_. They could practically see her breath in the air as she panted in what they could only describe as _pleasure_, but knew something was wrong when she finally slumped against him.

"Tsukune! Tsukune stop!" Kurumu shouted as she tried to forcefully remove him from her friend's neck. "Tsukune, you'll kill her!"

All at once it seemed sanity came back to the young man, because he pushed himself away in nothing short of horror. The taste, the taste had been indescribable. Her blood was so naturally cold it felt like he was drinking wine chilled to absolute perfection, an irresistible bouquet that lit up his senses, quenched the aridity scratching painfully against his throat. It had been so good, so good he had forgotten what he was doing. Looking down on her now he could already see the wounds closing up on her neck, but she was pale, so unnaturally pale, even for her. Why she looked so happy then he had no idea, but the only thing he could focus on was the weak rhythm of her heart, barely audible even to his ears.

"**Oh god…what have I done!"**

Despite the situation, Yukari and Kurumu couldn't help but do a double-take. In light of his recent transfiguration even his _voice_ was imbued heavily with power, just like Moka's, and it sounded _amazing_. Nonetheless, their attention was quickly brought back to their helpless friend, whose chest barely rose at all for her weak breaths.

_I need to get her to the infirmary!_ The thought was there that he could try what Moka had done to him all those years ago, but he wasn't about to risk that. For one, he wasn't sure what vampire blood would do to someone already an Ayashi; and second, he had no idea _how_.

Panic and anxiety gripped the young vampire. He had only wanted to be selfish once more, only wanted to see if it would work, he had never expected himself to be followed. He had become exactly what he wanted, and by doing so had nearly killed one of his closest friends. Some selfless person he turned out to be. He rose before he could even tell himself to, the continuous pain of his wet clothes all but completely disregarded. Mizore needed help, and by God he was going to get her to it.

"**We're going! She can't stay here!"**

Scooping her up in his arms, he was almost unsettled by how light she was in his grip, and he prayed it had to do with his newly-enhanced strength. Making sure she was comfortable against his chest and wouldn't be jarred by the speed he was about to take off at, Tsukune shot out of the icy cave, just barely able to feel the shock at how fast he had become even with the weakness of his body before the rain hit him again.

His whole body went rigid and he gasped in agony as he stumbled, holding the weak body in his arms against himself protectively. _Dammit! Dammit dammit dammit dammit dammit!_ He had completely forgotten about the storm outside! _No! I can't let this stop me! I can't!_ Willing his tortured body to move, he was barely able to make it back onto one knee. _Move! _The entirety of the pain threatened to block out rational thought once more, but he would have none of it. He used the pain to keep his focus, that single-minded desire to _get up_. Frost hung in the air as his anger grew, and so too did his breath grow more visible by the second. _No, dammit, NO!_

Ice shot up around them, crystals of solid water so tall they dwarfed the trees as the sharp prisms stretched to join each other at their zenith, creating a hallway in the middle of the forest. He looked down on the woman in his arms in amazement. _Is she trying to protect me even when unconscious?_ He really didn't deserve friends like this.

Adrenaline forced his muscles to cooperate, and the pull of gravity became lighter as he felt someone help him up. To the side, Kurumu nodded gravely, though in truth she was trying to stop from staring at the clear blue covering that had birthed itself seemingly of its own volition. With a serious nod back, Kurumu and Yukari had no other warning before he took off again, so fast within moments he was almost out of their sight. The sharp hallway of ice extended as he went, feeding off the abundant rainwater and soaked ground, keeping him from the ill-effects of the purifying liquid.

Prior to making chase, the two shared a significant look, both thinking the same thing:

Where had the ice come from?

…

He ran.

He ran faster than he ever had in his entire life, faster than he had ever been capable of _going_ his entire life. The ice kept pace miraculously, warping the images of the trees and gravestones he was passing through their watery glass. Finally after what seemed like ages the academy's Hospital Annex came into view, but to his intense irritation it seemed students and staff alike had collected outside, likely wondering what the explosion of light had been earlier.

Running as he was on instinct and adrenaline, he had no patience for those in front of him. He knew he was probably overreacting, but he wasn't about to let anything worse happen to Mizore. He was tired, he was in pain, and he was in a hurry. Baring his fearsome teeth, he snarled, though many had already turned his way at the sight of the rapidly growing ice formation coming towards them. **"Get the HELL out of my way!"**

The ice surged in response, shooting forward in razor-sharp icicles that stopped just short of the crowd, parting them instantly. He used the ramp the ice had created for a springboard, shooting himself out of the protective hall and over the gathering. His fangs punctured his lower lip as he muffled the cry he instinctively wanted to make at being out in the rain for even the one second he had, but quickly his fall had taken him through the doors of the annex and out of the storm.

He slipped as his wet shoes caught the waxed tile but as he was there was no pain he couldn't deal with, and even in his state he was able to roll to keep the woman in his arms from being injured. Slick shoes resulted in sliding to a stop at the front desk, and the nurse behind the counter just stared at him as he panted in exertion. She couldn't be blamed for doing so; she wasn't the only one. With wet silver hair that shone under the florescent lights of the hospital laying in disarray on his head, water and electricity dripping from powerful contours revealed in excruciating detail under his soaked clothes, and those features themselves slowly being highlighted by an angry red aura that was gradually gaining strength, he looked absolutely _demonic_. His equally fierce red eyes closed in on her, and she backed away unwittingly as that angry supernatural power flared to life despite its obvious weakness.

"**What are you sitting around for! She needs help!" **The trance was broken and doctors came from everywhere, to which he readily released her onto their stretcher before she was taken away. **"She'll probably need a blood transfusion!"** he called after them, and saw one of them nod in understanding, grimly looking at what had likely caused her need of said transfusion.

The crowd once outside had for the most part rushed in after him, wondering who, and _what_ it was that had done everything they had just witnessed. Flashes of wine-colored eyes and gleaming silver hair was all they had seen before the person had leaped clear over them in one jump. They didn't dare approach him now, they could see how unsteady and irritable his Youki was _visibly_. If he was what they thought he was, he could tear them apart with his bare hands.

Then he looked back at the nurse that still seemed frozen in place and grinned one of his familiar grins, one many of the Third Years had seen countless times before, if not just from a distance. They couldn't believe it. Had the rumors really been…true?

"**Well, that was eventful."**

Everything caught up with him at once, the pain, the exhaustion, the anxiety, and soon his beautiful crimson eyes rolled back in his head as he slumped to the floor unconscious.

Kurumu, Yukari, and the new addition of Ruby pushed their way through the crowd just in time to see Tsukune being wheeled off.

…

Moka Akashiya walked silently through the uniform white halls, trying to bring as little attention to herself as possible. After over a week of not drinking Tsukune's blood she had had to resort to going back to blood packs to keep herself conscious in class. The thirst was still there though, which made the stress eating away at her health all the worse. She preferred that though, she had no reason to look healthier than she felt inside.

Unlike usual the hospital was rather full, though not of patients. People still waited, clustered in groups and murmuring amongst themselves, though naturally many stopped and turned as they watched her walk by. Whispers of 'amazing' and 'vampire' caught her ears more than once, and she started in surprise.

_Vampire! How do they know!_

The rumors concerning her true form had been all but completely verified, but that was old news, there was no reason for it to be brought up again. Ever since she had met Tsukune people had focused less on her true nature and more on who she was. The ice formations gradually melting outside the hospital had offset her though as she had walked indoors. She had waited until the storm had passed, because even with an umbrella the winds would have made short work of sending her to her knees. Mizore was never frugal with her use of her abilities should the situation demand it, but she had never seen anything like what was melting outside.

For some reason she was still on edge. For a solitary second it had felt like Tsukune had released his Ghoul nature, but it came and went so quickly she had written it off as the stress getting to her. If that wasn't enough, she soon felt a huge burst of demonic energy, and then almost as soon as it had come it too had flickered into nothingness. It made no sense. She had felt the Youki of most of the higher class monsters in the school, but nothing came close to what she felt from that one for the few seconds she had been able to sense it. Only _hers_ did it justice.

_Fool me once…_ she thought tiredly as she searched the halls. Once was explainable as being overtired, but twice, especially as strong as the second had been, meant something had to be going on. The energy of her friends could be felt easily, they were so agitated feeling their Youki was nothing to her. She couldn't feel Tsukune though, and though that made her feel better in some small way because it hurt so much to look at him, part of her wished frantically that he was there.

After rounding yet another corner and finding more groups huddled together, whispering towards a certain door, she knew she had found them. Normally she wouldn't have bothered looking for them, the pain in her chest wanted nothing to remind herself of what her other self had so idiotically thrown away, but she needed to. With all the commotion earlier she found herself searching their energies out instantly, and to her horror they were in the hospital annex. The memories of the last time she had been in that place made her sick to her stomach. Even then, her vampire self had turned him away.

Looking at the door in question, where the stares were directed and her friends' Youki was located, her eyes widened. That other power was there too, warm in its very presence, and growing _significantly_ stronger. It was the nameplate that caught her off guard, sending both her and her inner self reeling.

It was marked simply 'Shirayuki, Mizore. Aono, Tsukune.'

_Two_ of her friends had been hospitalized? Not only that, but he was there, right behind the door, the one she had no right entering. As much as it hurt, as much as her heart clenched the closer her hand got to the handle, she had to see. She had to make sure he was okay, at the very least.

Three heads looked up when the door opened, and quickly turned back when they realized who it was. Her gaze saddened. They had every right to feel angry with her, hell, she was angry with _herself_. The room itself was dark, only one lamp giving meager light to the surroundings, but then again both occupants of the room _were_ unconscious. Taking a look around the room for who she desired to see she noticed Mizore under the covers on a bed, looking paler than normal even for her. She seemed to be regaining strength quickly, and a packet of blood was hanging from the nearby stand alongside her intravenous. Had she been injured so grievously she needed a transfusion? Then where were all the bandages?

A glance to the side, and her heart stopped.

Fear gripped her, clutched her heart in its cold embrace and _squeezed_. Even the vampire within her, silent and broken since her dismissal of Tsukune's confession, felt genuine fear for one of the handful of times in her life. The hair had caught her notice first; bright strands of precious metal shimmering like soft velvet down his head, leading her to now pale, ivory skin. Silver eyebrows floated peacefully over his closed eyelids, and she had no doubt as to what she would see behind them were they open. The power she had felt, the calm, kind aura beneath the demonic energy that rivalled her own…had been Tsukune.

She collapsed to her knees, relief and resentment burning for dominance inside her. Inner Moka was simply dumbstruck, for the very first time in her life absolutely speechless.

_**It's…it's not…possible…**_

She had to deny it, had to reject this ultimate irony in front of her. Barely two weeks earlier had she not ripped his heart from his body, crushed her own feelings for the man beneath her despicably fastidious pride…and for what? For what! For him to show her he really _had_ been everything she had ever needed in the end.

Hot tears burned her face as fresh disgust at herself ate away at her insides. "What happened?"

Kurumu turned to her then, not bothering to hide the revulsion she felt at the vampire's presence. "Tsukune tore off the Holy Lock and threw himself off a cliff in the middle of a thunderstorm," she hissed.

Moka's eyes, if it was possible, went even wider. "W-What!"

The Succubus stalked towards her, wrenching her up from the ground by the collar and holding her in her piercing amethyst glare. "I can only imagine what you said to him, but I never thought it would come to this. Watching you two slump through these past few days was _painful_, but it had honestly never crossed my mind that you would go that far. Do you have any idea what it was like, watching him tear that lock off? Could you possibly _imagine_ seeing him fall backwards towards what you could only think was his _death!_"

Neither Moka could say anything, but the look on her face said it all. She _could_ imagine it, and it made her stomach drop into her shoes. The violet eyes glaring at her softened in sadness, and another piece of Moka's heart broke at the look in them.

"I told you once before I'd never forgive you if you hurt Tsukune, didn't I?" she whispered through tears. "But I kept forgiving you, over and over again no matter how many times you brushed him off when he went to you instead of me. I thought of you like a sister I'd never had, even your inner self always came to our rescue when we needed it. You were an important friend, someone I'd trust my life to." The use of past-tense stabbed the pink-haired young woman with every passing word, and soon enough the purple orbs had returned to their hard stare. "But when I saw Tsukune fall from that cliff, I knew there was something that for all of your differences, all your self-proclaimed separateness from your inner self, there was something you shared with the vampire inside you. Your wishy-washy feelings never fail to hurt Tsukune."

It felt like she had been shot in the heart with a silver bullet. Both her and the red-eyed vampire within her, as much as she wanted to, even growled at the succubus for the insult to her, could say nothing. She was absolutely right. She had been offered everything she had ever wanted, ever needed, and because of her pride she had thrown it away. She loved him so much, but never enough, not even enough to overcome her own damn ego.

Kurumu looked back when she felt a hand on her shoulder, and Ruby stood behind her, pity deep in her eyes. "That's enough, Kurumu-chan."

She bristled as a fury that made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up spiked through her. "NO! It's _not_ enough! She never gets it through her head! If she loved Tsukune then she'd _love_ him dammit, not keep hurting him and making those that really _did_ love him see him like this!"

For all her vaunted superiority, even Inner Moka's face was warped in sorrow. The Succubus was as dumb as a brick when it came to schoolwork, but when it came to matters of the heart she was quite possibly the wisest person she knew. Only someone like her would be able to strip away her pride and plunge the—bitter, painful, all-too-true—truth right into her vulnerable core in one sentence.

The vampire did the only thing she could think of.

All three of them, Yukari, Ruby, and Kurumu most of all, backed away in shock at what they were seeing. Moka Akashiya…begging. On her hands and knees, the pink-haired young woman set her forehead to the ground in front of them as the tremors from her sobs shook her body. After a stunned silence, Moka looked up at them all, her swollen eyes out of place on her majestic face.

"Please, Kurumu-san, please forgive me just one more time," she rasped hoarsely. "I've told myself to get away from all of you so many times, how undeserving I am, how much danger I put you in by being around you, but I can't. You're my first friends, my best friends, my family. No matter how many times I say I can't stand to hurt Tsukune, by trying to protect him I always do exactly that!

"Though faint, I share all of my other self's memories and all of her feelings. We love him, we honestly do, but please, _please_, you have to understand; our world isn't a place where we can bring anyone but our equal. Vampires take their mates very seriously, and she's been taught ever since she was young not to accept anyone who can't show us our place. You're all long-lived, even Yukari-san and Ruby-san will probably live well past one hundred, but you aren't immortal like me…" she looked to the side sadly, her throat bobbing at the lump of emotion in her esophagus, "…like Tsukune. Please, _please _understand where we're coming from. Please, if you ever thought of me as your sister, I'm begging you to forgive me!"

She set her face back on the floor, awaiting their answer.

Though the words coming from her own body's mouth made Inner Moka cringe, she knew how much the people in front of her mattered to her sentimental side. There was only one person in the room she truly loved, and for that person she would swallow the disgrace of this act and humble herself before them. It was no less than he deserved after what she had done to him.

For the longest time there was silence, the tension in the room so thick it could be a meal in itself. The shivering body of the sobbing vampire then felt lithe hands place themselves on her shoulders before she found herself pulled up off the ground, staring wide-eyed into the tearful orbs of her would-be sister. The smaller woman shocked her seconds later by pulling her into a warm embrace, and Moka's sobs reached new heights as she collapsed into her friend, clasping to her back like she was a lifeline. The Succubus allowed the tears to run their course, sweeping her gentle hands through her friend's lengthy hair while she wept into her sweater. When the heart-wrenching sobs finally subsided into hiccupped sniffles, she broke the silence.

"I never want to hear you call me _–san_ again, you got that?" The woman in her arms laughed unwittingly, nodding happily into the fabric. "I swear I'm too soft sometimes, but I guess I can't stay mad at my family."

"Kurumu-chan…"

"Moka-saaaaaaan, waaaaaaaah!" Yukari cried as she launched herself into her friend's stomach, great, heavy tears falling from the witch's face. Moka smiled tenderly as her and Kurumu's positions were reversed; now it was her turn to do the comforting. Another hand was put on her shoulder, and she looked up to see Ruby smiling at her gently. A simple nod was all the response needed.

"I guess I can forgive you," a voice muttered through a yawn, and they all looked up in surprise to see Mizore stretching her arms with a cute sigh. "I may not forgive you for waking me up though; I was having such a nice dream…" She looked down on herself with a cringe, eyeing the hospital gown in distaste. "It's better than wet clothes, but could they have at least tried to get something my size?"

Kurumu smiled shrewdly. "Seems like you're back to normal, stalker-girl."

The Snow Woman smiled back as she reached over her intravenous for the lollipop on her nightstand. "I could say the same, you big-breasted moron." She frowned adorably. "I really wasn't joking though, it was a great dream…"

"Probably because of what happened to put you to sleep!" Yukari announced happily as she nestled in Moka's warmth. "You looked like you were having an or—!" The blue-haired succubus hastily slapped her hands over the girl's mouth, blushing madly.

"What do I keep telling you about talking about things like that!"

Mizore's face on the other hand, lit up in an expression that clearly said, 'oh yeaaahh, I forgot about that!'

Kurumu saw the look on her face, and her mouth dropped. "W-Wait…did you?"

Full lips lengthened through the lollipop in her mouth just enough for the others to notice. "I'll never tell."

It looked like the violet-eyed monster of the night was restraining herself from tackling someone already in a hospital bed and wiping that smug look right off her face. Moka just looked between the three in confusion. "Would someone mind explaining to me what happened?"

The Succubus sobered at that. "Whatever made him do it is in the past now, but Tsukune obviously hadn't thought of what would happen if it actually worked, which he must of thought it would. He's lucky we followed him. Even if he turned, he had thrown himself into the _sea_ in the middle of a _thunderstorm_." She saw the terror that swept uninhibitedly through Moka at that. "Yeah, you of all people can understand. It might have been okay had he been able to pull himself out of the water, but water was falling from _everywhere_. No need to elaborate on that." The vampire's skin was an almost sickly green color just at the thought. "I hauled him up, and after Mizore made us a shelter, we finally saw what had happened to him. You can see that for yourself, and I don't understand it any more than you do. After he had calmed down some he looked fine, but when it looked like he was going to answer us his eyes just kind of…glazed."

Inner Moka winced. She knew what had happened. The thirst had taken hold.

Yukari jumped front and center unexpectedly. "Next thing we know he's latched to Mizore-san's neck, and she's all…" She mimicked the previous actions of the Snow Woman, gaping her mouth and twitching with a look of absolute rapture on her face, panting heavy breaths that showed she had entirely too much practice with acting such a scene. Ruby and Moka's entire bodies turned a deep scarlet at the implications, but Mizore's smirk had yet to fade.

"Don't look so damn smug! He could have killed you had he held on any longer!" Kurumu shouted irritably.

The other woman simply shrugged. "I would have died happy."

Now three bodies had turned completely red.

Turning to Moka, the bluette shook her comically in mock-despair. "How do you explain that, huh! Looking at you and Tsukune I thought it was supposed to hurt!"

Moka coughed in embarrassment. "R-Remember how I said vampires are creatures of vanity back in our second year, the reason why our transformation into animals is a lost art?" The girls nodded. "I-It was more c-common in male vampires, b-but…what's m-more vain than knowing a woman will…will feel…_pleasure_…when you bite them? I-It is p-pretty uncommon n-nowadays though, what with all the blood packs." The look on her face when she saw her friends' expressions was priceless. "S-Stop drooling!"

The dazed look had yet to weaken on Ruby. "It certainly would be useful when they're hungry…what woman would deny _that?_" No hands were raised—not even Moka's—that was painfully obvious, and the looks returned.

Then something hit the only conscious vampire in the room. "But wait, if he fed from Mizore-chan until she was unconscious, who made the ice I saw on the way here?"

Both Yukari and Kurumu looked down, abashed. "We…have no idea. Tsukune was in such a blind rage to get Mizore to help he picked her up and jumped right back into the rain." The emerald-eyed beauty's open-mouthed stare resumed. "Yeah, I know. Smart, huh? It didn't go over well in any case, but right after that the ice just kinda shot up from nowhere! You weren't still conscious, were you?" the busty Succubus asked her bedridden companion.

At that, Mizore simply shook her head, a look equal to Moka's now present on her face. Said vampire paled when her inner self spoke up, identical disbelief coating her powerful voice. "It can't be…"

She was nearly blasted back by the simultaneous, "WHAT?" from her friends.

"A Chi no Kenja…in this day and age…?" It was a good thing Kokoa wasn't there, she would have fainted.

Ever the child genius, the only thirteen-year old among them spoke up, as pale as her beloved vampires. "Are you serious ~desu! Tsukune-san's a Blood Sage?"

She was soon being strangled by the ever-irritable Succubus. "Quit hogging all the info to yourselves! What's a Chi no Kenja!"

Moka licked her dry lips. "It…it's a title only ancient vampires have now. It was more common during the warring eras when they faced plenty of Ayashi as well as humans. You all know a vampire's primary ability is turning their aura to power, and our strength comes from our blood, right?" Another synchronized nod. "Well, a Chi no Kenja, or Blood Sage, is a vampire who's developed the ability to turn the blood of their Ayashi victims into their own power for a short period of time before it's digested." The implications of that were lost on none of them. "The skill itself they employ we call 'ketsueki karite', as they essentially borrow the power in the blood of their prey. Naturally, it doesn't really have any effect if the monster they drink from is just raw muscle power, but those particularly skilled in magic or elementally gifted can have devastating effects. Imagine Kuyou's fire with a well-fed vampire's strength behind it."

They all shivered.

"It makes sense…" Ruby said after a while, and was unperturbed by the looks the others shot her. "Hey! It does! Tsukune-san was human, but he was constantly forced to rely on the strength of vampire blood to survive! Now that he's turned into a full vampire, it doesn't seem too unlikely that he'd start doing that to any other blood he consumed, does it?" She was promptly tackled to the ground by an ecstatic Yukari, muttering something about 'smart witches.'

"How long do you think he'll be out for? It's getting pretty late," Mizore questioned after a quick look out the window.

Kurumu rolled her eyes. "This from the person who not six hours ago was barely breathing."

"**I don't think you have to worry about that, do they, Tsukune-kun?"** They all jumped in surprise. Turning around, they found the school board chairman, the Exorcist, right behind them, smiling that same dark smile he always wore.

"M-Master! W-When did you get here!" Ruby cried.

"**Oh, I've been here for a while. I did you a favor and sent those other children back to the dorms on my way here. My my, do you certainly know how to cause a stir, Tsukune-kun."**

The fact that he was talking to someone who was unconscious had them swivelling back in an instant, and soon they saw the pale eyelids of the newly-born vampire open sleepily. **"I have to admit it does seem like one of the few talents I have."**

Both Mokas were rocked to their core the second his new voice escaped his lips. It was the same one they knew before; the kind, gentle, low tenor of the man they loved, but suffused so heavily with supernatural strength it made his every word ring in their ears. It was unlike anything she had ever heard before, and the fact that it was coming from Tsukune affected her even greater than it would have otherwise. A piece of her died every time she noticed something that had changed about him, though nothing had changed at all, not really. She had just been too blind to see.

Ruby, Kurumu, and Yukari however, they did the exact opposite of turning introspective like Moka had done. The three females launched themselves at the man of their affections, and it was a good thing he wasn't wounded physically and only exhausted, because he would have been in significantly more pain had that been the case. It had happened once before after all. This time he was ready for it at least, and besides being tired he felt better than he ever had in his life, a fact made all the more prominent when he saw his new skin again.

"When did you wake up!"

"**I started hearing mumbling about 'Blood Sage' and 'ketsu kari-something-or-other'. I just wanted to go back to sleep!"** He sighed as he adjusted his position in bed, trying to get himself into a less embarrassing position between the three young women around him. **"Can I get some water or something? I'm really thirsty."** The incredulous stares of those around him brought him back to his new reality, and also what he was truly thirsty for. **"Oh, right. Water: bad. That'll take some getting used to."**

"**Indeed it will,"** the Exorcist chuckled. **"Allow me to congratulate you on your new life; you make a fine vampire if I do say so myself."**

"B-But Master!" his assistant exclaimed in confusion, "wasn't the Holy Lock supposed to keep his vampire blood in check!"

That same dark chuckle came from the hooded man. **"The Holy Lock—"**

"**Worked exactly like it should have, didn't it?"** Tsukune interrupted boldly, glaring at the man who had sealed his Ghoul nature.

A wide grin stretched over the parts of his face they could see, and his strange eyes shone brighter. **"Ah, figured it out did we?"**

"**Not entirely, but I can guess the pieces I don't know."**

"B-But this doesn't make any sense! T-This…_this_…" Moka cried, pointing a finger behind her at Tsukune's resting form, "shouldn't be possible!"

"**Come now child, did you really believe Tsukune-kun over there was the first human to have extended contact with a vampire? As much as your ancestors loved war, even the most bloodthirsty of species has its oddities. Eventually even the immortal get tired of fighting a never-ending battle. The legend of vampirism in humans in the first place came about because of the contact between them.**

"**They got tired, they sought new things, some even fell in love. What you did to Tsukune-kun was by no means the first time something like that had been done. Usually it was stretched out, sometimes over weeks, sometimes over months, depending on how well the body took to the supernatural energy it could even take years. Then again, **_**they**_** usually didn't manage to mortally wound themselves at every confrontation."** Tsukune's pale skin colored at the sarcastic tone of the Exorcist's voice. He knew without doubt _that _was directed at him. **"Of course, things went wrong in some cases, and the body degenerated into a Ghoul. The Holy Lock was made not as a seal, but as a filter to allow the body to get used to the intense Youki it would soon depend on to live."**

"That _still_ doesn't make any sense!"

They all cringed at the seemingly omniscient look he set on the pink-haired vampire. **"Would you mind telling me what happened to Hokuto Kaneshiro?"** All at once, anyone who had been having trouble following the conversation instantly understood. **"The very fact that he was able to regain his human form is solely because of the lock's existence. He had already gotten used to his Youki enough to safely break the seal, the only reason for his monstrous form was the hybrid blood within him. Granted, there were still ill-effects while the lock was in place, but that soon became pointless after it was removed and he was allowed full access to his powers.**

"**By training to keep the strain on the Holy Lock to a minimum, Tsukune-kun here was putting the full force of his Youki back into his body, condensing it into himself rather than letting the lock diffuse it. By doing this of his own will, he was readying his body for the explosion of demonic energy that happens during the unsealing of a vampire. His Ghoul state was nothing more than an interim existence between the two."**

As much as it involved him, Tsukune was having a hard time focusing on the conversation. With the three bodies huddled so closely beside him, arms even draped over his shoulders for the most part, he found himself gravitating towards their necks. He snapped back as if slapped when he realized what he was doing, but trying to listen in soon became an exercise in futility. He had already figured out most of what was being explained anyway.

_How long was I out? My throat feels like sandpaper…. _Each of the women around him had a different scent, and even with that his eyes trailed to Mizore as well, her taste still fresh in his mind. His Adam's apple bobbed heavily as he fought the urge, his bright red orbs closing in on their throats against his will. They smelled…_delicious_.

_Yeah, just a bit of—NO! Bad Tsukune! Bad!_ He mentally slapped himself a few times. Would it always be this hard to control?

Kurumu flinched inadvertently and looked back at him when she felt sharp points scrape against her flesh, and Tsukune pushed himself back with a hand over his mouth, absolutely horrified. **"I…I'm tho thorry."**

The Exorcist merely chuckled. **"It appears any further explanation will have to wait for later, our fledgling seems to be thirsty. Now that I have a feel for your new Youki, Tsukune-kun, come to my office in one week; I will have a Rosario ready for you. We can't very well have you breaking the school transformation law without warrant."**

Of all the reactions, Tsukune looked rightfully relieved, and removed his hand from his mouth carefully. **"T-Thank you."**

An ominous chuckle was his only answer as the board chairman excused himself from the room, leaving the six in silence once more.

"That was as sufficiently creepy as always," the blue-haired woman said with a grimace. "But enough of that! Tsukune's thirsty, isn't he?" She batted her eyelashes as she pressed her bosom against him suggestively, and Tsukune saw red, just barely restraining himself from throwing her to the bed and ravaging her neck. As hard as it was, he refrained for the moment, eyes suddenly locked on the emerald gaze he had avoided for the past two weeks.

Moka was having trouble breathing under the intense crimson stare of what had been her best friend. Where once she had seen everything: hope, love, kindness, now she only saw something akin to sadness—resignation. He knew he had done everything within his power to be what she needed, now the ball was in her court. He wasn't about to approach her again, she knew that much. The pieces of her heart throbbed brokenly within her, and even the vampire within didn't have the strength to hold his gaze.

Two words broke her, just like she had done to him so knowingly days earlier. **"Come on,"** he said, gesturing to himself with his head, exposing his neck openly. They were the last words she deserved, the last words she had ever expected him to say. **"I know it can't have been easy. Don't give me any nonsense about not drinking from fellow vampires; it was fine while I was a Ghoul, it should be fine now. Just drink, you look like you're going to faint any second."**

Why did he always have to be so kind to her? Why couldn't he hate her like she wanted him to so badly? Why did he have to understand her so intimately? She could do nothing but smile and nod gratefully with wet eyes before throwing herself into his arms and sinking her fangs into his neck, endlessly repeating the words _I'm sorry_ in her mind.

She had never tasted anything so rich, so powerful and warm. It flowed down her throat like a drug, even more addictive than his human blood had been. She hated herself more with each drop that she drank, given irrefutable evidence of his quality. He wasn't her equal, he was far, far more. He smiled at her when she was done, and it hurt even more then. She didn't deserve his love, and yet she knew it was hers, if she could only bring herself to tell him. She couldn't, at least not now. She had to make amends first.

Leaving the bed, she walked to the door with a heavy heart. "…Thank you. I'll see you tomorrow…all right?"

It was nice to know they had a tomorrow together; time to heal the wounds of the past and build a future. He nodded wordlessly, that same understanding smile still on his face.

Kurumu turned to him with a pout, but said nothing. "My turn now?"

Inwardly he rolled his eyes. He couldn't quite understand why she was so eager to have him drink her blood. Whenever Moka did it was actually quite painful. Nonetheless, that thirst had become too much to ignore anymore, and he greedily sunk his fangs into her flesh, unnoticing of the way she went rigid the moment they pierced her skin.

The girls watched the expression of the Succubus morph in the pleasure her race was associated with as her tail and wings appeared of their own will, shivering in absolute joy. It looked like every muscle she had was trembling in bliss, and the incarnation of Lust itself looked even closer to that description than ever before. When at last he pulled away, she slumped against him in a boneless heap, panting wildly.

"I think I just lost my virginity!" she gasped heatedly.

Tsukune fainted immediately.

…

**Author's Notes:** Well, here's the second chapter! Love the reviews, I hope you still find the story worthy of them! Not much to say this time other than thanking all my reviewers, and hope earnestly I get more!

Hope you enjoyed the chapter!


	3. Now Things Get Complicated

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Rosario+Vampire, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story. Simple enough, ne? Just don't copy from this story and we're all good!

**.**

**Now Things Get Complicated**

**.**

It was just another day.

A boring day that had started out like any other, Kokoa Shuzen had gone about her morning ritual like she had hundreds of times before. Though momentarily interested by the explosion of demonic energy that had been the talk of the school the day before last, not only had it vanished nearly as soon as it had appeared, but it had also been raining buckets, and she had no desire to writhe in pain that particular day. Or ever. It was a crippling weakness, but it was a small price to pay to wield the awesome power associated with her grand race.

Now a proud Second Year of Youkai Academy, the redheaded vampiress had left the dorm the same time as always, hoping to 'bump into' her sister like she did every other day. The route was the same as always—one that most assuredly had _not_ been memorized according to her sister's routine—though bidden by some unknown instinct this time she kept walking down the path, away from the school and closer to the boy's dorms. There was a trembling in the air, something that ignited her inborn Youki detector without even being emotionally agitated.

There were only a few powers she had ever felt that had done that, one of them being her beloved sister. The possibility that she had stumbled upon her onee-sama, unsealed, so close to the men's dormitories had her blood boiling. _She must be with that sorry excuse for a man again! That's the only explanation!_

She had been practically jumping for joy over the past two weeks, seeing that both Tsukune and Moka had been conspicuously absent from each other's presences. He hadn't even shown up for school at all yesterday. She had taken great pleasure in trying to hang around with her sister over that time, but she looked devastated to an extent that just plain hurt to be around. Something had happened between the two, and she had a good idea what, but the fact that her sister seemed so depressed meant her own actions had caused _her_ pain as well.

That didn't sit well with her at all. There was always a certain congruity between Moka's personalities, meaning that for the most part they felt the same way; at least to certain extents. The depth of the pain her sister was in told of the equality of the emotion, and that her precious sister was feeling it that much meant both were nothing short of overcome. She couldn't understand that. She knew her sister would have known the relationship she had with the human could never work out, so why did she still look so broken in spite of that? If she was alone with him now, she would find out for herself.

Urging herself to stay quiet, she silently crept along the tree line. She could feel the power getting closer, it was somewhere near her, and the fact that it seemed to be alone meant the little loser she always hung out with wasn't even giving off any Youki anymore. Her mouth fell when she finally came upon the being she was searching for.

Silver hair danced wildly in the air as the body spun, issuing smooth kicks to nothing with practiced grace. Fighting invisible enemies coming from every side, the combatant shot his arms out, impeccable poise and precision behind every strike. For a seemingly simple kata it was amazingly complex, flowing from punch to kick and vice-versa with maximum force and no energy wasted. It was, in a word, incredible.

It was also chillingly familiar.

Her throat refused to work when she finally took in the belted slacks on the body, the standard white button-up tucked impeccably in while the tie wrapped around his neck flew about. There was no skirt, no knee-length hair, it wasn't _female_ at all. She _felt_ the eyes on her before she saw them, and her knees shook when she saw the feline pupils lock in on her, their scarlet background nearly swallowing her whole.

She was looking at a vampire. Not just any vampire either, but one of her _onee-sama's_ caliber!

And he bore a face she knew all too well.

"No way…" came the breathless whisper. "No. _Way!_"

Disbelief and outrage burned in her blood. It couldn't be true, there was no way it was possible. He had her sister in both forms, been the special recipient of her personal training even! He had everything she had ever wanted from her sister, all but two things. Now it was down to one, just one thing he lacked that she knew in some sense she had.

She was moving before she could order herself to, her faithful bat taking the unspoken command and turning into one of her trusty, enormous weapons. The spiked morning-star smashed the ground where he had been standing seconds prior, and to her supreme irritation he had managed to move out of the way like it was second nature. Despite how heavy the weapon looked—and rightly was—her strength made swinging it easy, and it was soon directed at its target once again. He weaved through her blows frantically, and she took sick satisfaction in the fear on his face.

"**Kokoa-chan, wait! I can explain!"**

White hot fury erupted within her. Even his voice, the weak, arguably sweet tone of the weakling's voice had been charged, _overloaded_, with power, just like her onee-sama. "Shut up! Die! Just DIE, _DIE_ you imposter!" Her demonic aura flared around her, ruby eyes blazing. This couldn't be happening; she was still asleep, dreaming a terrible nightmare.

"**Damn it—"** Swing. **"Kokoa-chan!"** Kick. **"You're not—"** Punch. **"Making this—"** Swing. **"Any easi—oh crap!"** _That_ one had been rather hasty after a particularly close brush of steel against his hair. **"Any…easier for me!"** The normally mild-tempered tone rose in frustration, and soon she was immersed in demonic power so strong it was like her sister was right in front of her. Her next wild blow at his head stopped dead in its tracks when he finally _did_ something rather than try to evade her every strike, and Kokoa felt her entire body shake when she saw his hand holding off her weapon, feet inches into the ground after taking the weight behind it. The truly fearsome aspect was he looked no worse for wear either.

"It's not possible…it can't be you…" Numb fingers dropped her weapon, and Kou reformed and perched himself on her shoulder just in time for her to sink to the ground in a despair that threatened to take her over.

Those bright red eyes, so like her own, looked at her sympathetically. **"I'm not trying to take your sister away from you."**

Her every muscle tensed. _Can he read minds?_ "W-What are you talking about!"

He crouched down to her level, not daring to touch the irate vampire who would sooner take off his head than allow him to lay a hand on her. **"You know what I mean."**

The words cut to her center, ashamed he had been able to see through her so easily. She never made an effort to hide her adoration of her older sister, but that he had seen her unease so effortlessly was simply unsettling. Not about to admit to her weakness, she snapped, "I thought you couldn't stand the thought of living as a Youkai!"

He flinched, and she smirked victoriously. His melancholy smile soon after made her stomach twist. It felt like she had kicked a puppy. **"I did, once. It's funny isn't it? I wanted power to protect you all, yet it came in the form of what I had hated. But you know, eventually I couldn't conceive of living without the vampire blood in me…and soon I was shown just how abysmally inadequate I was even **_**with**_** it."** She winced. There was so much pain in that last line she had _felt_ it.

"**My parents are in the human world, and I love them, so, so much; but…the thought of being separated from Moka-san forever…it terrifies me. Going back to a normal human life, marrying a normal human woman, having a normal human family…I…I just can't imagine it anymore. You're right Kokoa-chan, I **_**did**_** hate everything this place embodied, I **_**didn't**_** belong here; but now…there's no other place I'd rather be. You're her sister, no one can replace you in her heart. I'm just…trying to find **_**my**_** place there, surely **_**you**_** can understand that?"**

The sad thing was, she could. She had spent her entire life trying to scrape up the smallest bit of recognition from her family, and now with everything done with she knew she mattered to her sister, no matter what form she was in. Deep down she knew how much Tsukune had suffered to get to where he was, but it still pained her to see the pedigree his powers had taken. While she would never acknowledge it to his face, the weakling had been getting progressively more attractive over the time she had been around him. Now with gleaming silver hair falling all around his face and kind red eyes burning out from under long bangs he looked absolutely _edible_.

She nearly choked on the laughter that wanted to burst out of her lungs at the thought.

Not about to let him off the hook just because he did her sister's beauty justice in his new form, she quickly responded with, "You disgrace my race or Onee-sama and I really _will_ kill you."

He chuckled uneasily while rubbing the back of his head like he did so often, and she almost smiled at him. He could be so unwittingly handsome sometimes it was downright unsettling. **"I'll do my best."**

"What the heck were you doing out here alone anyway? You're not still training with Onee-sama, are you?"

Another nervous chuckle. **"I usually do some in the morning before I walk to school, but…let's just say I was up earlier than usual today."** He didn't look particularly happy that he had either.

Kokoa eyed him suspiciously. "Something happen?"

"**I woke up and couldn't get back to sleep, probably because I pretty much slept through yesterday. Since I was still practically asleep, I decided I might as well get myself up since I obviously wasn't going back to bed. I went to the washroom to get myself ready and splashed some water on my face without thinking about it."**

The redheaded vampire visibly recoiled. "Are you a moron or what! Good god, talk about a good way to start the day…"

Tsukune grimaced. **"Tell me about it. Let's just say I had some energy to burn after that."**

The younger girl could only shake her head in her palm before looking through her fingers skeptically. "Then you probably haven't eaten anything today yet either, have you? Blood may be our primary diet, but food _does_ help curb the thirst."

As she expected, the red-eyed man rubbed the back of his head again in embarrassment. **"After being so wonderfully reminded of my weakness to fresh water, I was too scared to eat anything."**

She stood up unexpectedly, and Tsukune nearly fell flat on his butt. Walking over to where she had dropped her bag earlier, he saw her rummage through it before something hit him in the chest. Grasping hysterically at the object lest it fall, he was beyond surprised when he saw a perfectly formed rice ball in his hands.

"**Kokoa-chan…"**

The young woman turned away awkwardly. "D-Don't get the wrong idea! Get some tomato juice when we get to school, I won't have someone who shares Onee-sama's blood fainting in the middle of class!"

"**Speaking of school…"**

A bell rang in the distance, and both vampires' ruby orbs widened in fear. As the two ran off to the academy with supernatural speed, Kokoa's words could be heard as clear as day.

"This is all _your_ fault!"

…

The school halls were relatively deserted, but that might have been a good thing considering the blur of speed rushing through the walkways would have been rather uncomfortable to run into. Roll call was just starting in homeroom, and the door burst open just as Tsukune Aono's name was called by the cheerful blonde Cat-Woman, unintentionally bathing the class in the demonic energy he was radiating without thinking.

Alphabetical order sucked when your last name started with 'A.'

There were only a couple of people in the class not completely panic-stricken under the powerful yet surprisingly docile Youki, and Shizuka Nekonome only raised an eyebrow over her perpetually squinted eyes.

"**I'm sorry I'm late! Getting to school was a fight-and-a-half today!"** More like just a 'half,' but Kokoa would kill him if he ever thought that out loud of the gradually growing vampire.

What was probably even more surprising was the fact that their teacher barely seemed startled at all. If one looked close enough however they might question the barely opened eye discreetly giving the vampire an appraising once-over as he came in. It was there and gone in a second, and she was soon back to her regular hyperactive self. "Good morning, Tsukune-kun! Please try to be on time from now on! The teachers have been informed of your circumstances and the reason for your absence yesterday, but please try to keep your Youki to a minimum in class."

Unlike the other girls of the class, who were staring at the new Tsukune in front of them, Moka, Yukari, Kurumu, and Mizore were glaring at _them_ for staring at _Tsukune_. It was unavoidable, but eventually a hand got raised. To their unreserved irritation, it was one of the girls that was still doing a rather poor job of concealing her ogling. "N-Nekonome-sensei…is…is that really…Aono-kun?"

Tsukune looked around curiously, hopelessly confused. **"I still belong to this class, don't I?"** He smiled lightheartedly, and a few students backed away instinctively at the sharp fangs that came into view when he did so.

"Tsukune-kun's seal broke the other day, so until he can get a new one he's being allowed to come to school in monster form!" How she could make everything she said sound like the first idea of its kind the class had yet to figure out.

"Not to sound stupid, but can't he just transform like the rest of us?"

Shizuka's tail wagged wildly in excitement. "Of course not, silly, the Vampire is an S-Class monster for a reason! Some are simply so strong even when they try to assume a human form the strength of their Youki makes it impossible! That's why most resort to some sort of external seal to keep their energies under control! Take Tsukune-kun here for example: he was just trying to get to class and his Youki's like this! Imagine him angry or thirsty!"

It really didn't help that his stomach chose _that_ moment to growl hungrily. It might have been better had he not eaten the rice ball Kokoa gave him, because that just made him want more. Even the grassy taste of the rice from the herbal water seemed to be all but gone now that he was a vampire, and his power jumped at the thought of more food.

Half the class scooted backwards nervously as the young vampire held his stomach.

"**S-Sorry. I kinda had a bad couple of days; didn't make this morning too good either."**

The golden-haired teacher cocked her head to the side with a worried frown. "Are you going to be okay? If you need to be excused just ask; Sensei wouldn't want to be in the sights of a hungry vampire!" she cajoled cheerily, and his friends almost fell out of their desks. Tsukune's fangs throbbed at the illustration, and Shizuka chuckled warily as she saw his eyes trail down to her neck. "Tsukune-kun…?"

He shook off his trance hastily, flustered he had been looking at his teacher the same way she looked at fish. **"You're…you're right. This was a mistake. I shouldn't have come to school without a seal!"** He dashed out of the door faster than he had come in, suddenly critical he get himself away from the heartbeats of anything living else he do something he knew he'd regret.

The days before had been fraught with ordeals and distractions, and yesterday he had been practically comatose, so he hadn't had too much time to dwell on it. Now the thirst was prominent. Things might have been different had he been able to eat something more filling than a rice ball that morning, or if he hadn't splashed water on his face like the idiot he was, but the fact of the matter remained he was now just as thirsty as he remembered he had been when he first transformed.

_How! How can Moka-san deal with this day after day! Does it get better eventually?_ He couldn't believe he had looked at his own _teacher_ like she was something to eat!

Collapsing next to the drink dispenser he smashed the button for tomato juice, inhaling the substitute in huge gulps that turned the can to garbage in no time. Moka had been right, it really did take the edge off the thirst. At least now he felt like he wouldn't attack the first student that passed him by.

"I thought you'd be here."

He nearly jumped at the unexpectedness of the voice coming from behind him, and whirled around to see his ever faithful stalker walk up from one of the exits. **"M-Mizore-chan! Shouldn't you be in class?"**

She shrugged. "Wouldn't be the first time I skipped. This is more important anyways. We talked with Moka yesterday, and she said the thirst would be greater than normal for the first few days. Kurumu and I decided we'd take turns, and I won the rock-paper-scissors match."

Tsukune turned a rather amusing shade of white. **"T-Take…turns…?"**

The Snow Woman flipped her choppy hair to the side with an elegant wave of her head, exposing her delicate throat to his eyes. "Giving you blood of course. Doing it to Moka would just make her thirsty and the whole cycle would start over; but hey, we figured since you offered your blood to her every day, we could do the same now that you're in the same predicament."

"**You nearly died last time!"**

Mizore scowled. "You're comparing me to human women. Ayashi have always healed fast, even if we don't heal as fast as vampires. I'm more than healthy enough for the amount of blood you'll need."

His resolve was failing fast, and she could see it in his eyes. **"But…what if I can't control myself?"**

Her eyes softened and she walked forward, boldly twining her fingers together behind his neck. It wasn't like Kurumu's usual embraces, it was gentle, trusting. That she had never done anything like it before made it all the more thrilling, and something deep inside him stirred at the caring hold that had nothing to interrupt it for once. "Tsukune, I trust you; all of us do. You'll learn to control this just like you learned to harness your Ghoul power, we all know that."

His body acted without his mind's consent, twirling them around until he had his blue-eyed stalker pinned against the wall that had once been behind him. Her scent filled him, the crisp, cool freshness of the purest mountain spring. Back when he had been a human that had been his favorite kind of water, the kind that froze his throat on the way down and made his whole body shiver as it reveled in the intense cold that released it from the dread of dehydration. He found himself in the same position once again, but this time that liquid was the blood of a woman; a drop dead gorgeous woman.

The violet-haired beauty gasped at the unanticipated but greatly desired action of her love interest. She was hoisted up to his eye level, allowing him to inhale the scent from her neck greedily, which sent shivers of a whole different sort through her naturally cold body. Whether he knew it or not she didn't know, but she could feel him against her thighs, and his heat was driving her wonderfully insane. It figured it would take a transfiguration of vampiric proportions to make Tsukune admit his more primal desires.

Her world lost focus as his fangs punctured her veins, releasing the nourishment into his waiting mouth. It wasn't with the same untamed frenzy as the day before last, instead he gently coaxed the blood from her with soft suckles that had her womanhood burning. The pleasure was the same as she remembered, blocking any and all pain she might have felt from his bite from her mind. She felt like she was melting against him, but even if she died she wouldn't want him to stop. After an eternity that seemed much too short he pulled away, carefully licking the remnants of blood from her already closing wounds. Even supported as she was by him she still buckled in his grip, jostling her hips against him and letting her feel his masculinity without question.

Half-lidded sapphire eyes gazed near drunkenly into fiery ruby, and frost coated the surroundings from the state of the Snow Woman and the Vampire filled with her power. Their breaths hung in the air as their faces neared, a blind compulsion she felt no need to fight against. This wasn't innocent, the lust hidden deep in his gaze had her heart thrashing inside her. They were so close, so close it felt like he was sucking the very air out of her lungs, but at the last minute he hesitated.

She saw the battle take place inside him, and sighed sadly. He could only close his eyes and rest his head on her shoulder, ashamed of himself for yet another hurtful action towards one of the ones he cared for. She merely secured her arms around him tighter, comforting _him_ in light of what should have hurt _her_. Honestly, she really wasn't about to complain. She may not have gained a kiss, but she was still pressed rather intimately against him, and that more than made up for it in her mind.

"It's okay Tsukune, I know." He went rigid in her grip, and she chuckled softly. They'd have to be blind not to notice it. Rubbing her cheek against him, she swept her soft skin over his hair before positioning her mouth by his ear, bathing the lobe in her cold, hot breath. "And I don't care. I'll be happy as long as I know you love me too. Snow Women have always been infamous as mistresses."

He froze in a whole new way, and Mizore simply giggled demurely as she disentangled herself from his hold. With a strut that looked entirely too enticing on her she strode off, sending only a wink over her shoulder at the shocked vampire.

When his limbs finally defrosted enough to move, he collapsed. Panting hard, Tsukune could only mutter, **"Holy hell…"**

Things had just stepped up, and in a way he had never anticipated.

…

By the time Tsukune made it back to class homeroom was already over, and Mizore was sitting back in her seat, looking like she had never left in the first place. The thought came to mind that she probably hadn't, knowing how easy it was for her to make ice clones. It _was_ a rather handy skill to have. The class seemed visibly less anxious now that his Youki was more placid, even though they didn't want to think of what had happened to make it so. Though they couldn't sense demonic energy to the extent Vampires could innately, there was an instinctive sense of fear that came from feeling the power so much higher than theirs, and the lack of agitation did their hearts good.

Try as he might, he just couldn't devote all of his attention to classes. Between his new transfiguration into one of the most feared monsters in the world and the revelation of his Snow Woman companion, Tsukune Aono was through the rhetorical loop. He had always known that they cared for him—loved him, if he was being perfectly honest with himself—but that he had just been told so openly that she still loved him even though he loved Moka rocked him to the deepest part of his once-human morality.

He wanted so badly to try with one of them, but the whole point of his potential death had been to see if he really could become a Vampire. As naïve as it seemed, he had never thought beyond that too much. Now he was, and the knowledge that he _could_ be with Moka if she deemed it fit kept turning a mind that wanted above anything to turn away back to her. Every time it did, he felt a new jolt surge his system, one just as justified as his love for her.

Anger.

Normally he was a very calm person, one that hated fighting unless absolutely necessary. He had always known he was never her equal, but the hope had been there that for once she would be able to look past that intangible senselessness. He had been kidding himself. Now however, now he knew he _could_ be her equal, but how to go about showing her that, he had no idea.

Other than the thirst he was bombarded with whenever he hadn't drank for too long, he felt no different than when he was a Ghoul. Of course, the feel of his Youki had changed drastically, as had the way he tapped into it, but for the most part he still felt like the human Tsukune Aono. How to show the woman he loved that he was different than he was before when he felt no different than he was before was a conundrum the likes of which he had never dealt with.

"Tsukune-kun?"

"**Gah! I-I mean, yes Sensei?"** he answered quickly, and only then did he notice the problem on the board behind her. _Oh please no, anything but that._

"I asked you to solve this question and you ignored me. Care to try again?" The math teacher was one no one wanted to get on the bad side of, though she had had a healthy fear of vampires since her encounter with Moka in their first year.

His eyes scanned the equation frantically, and his mouth moved before he could tell it to. Kagome Liliko froze at the head of the class, and looking to his side he could see Moka and Kurumu's open mouths. He heard more than saw Mizore's lollipop fall, and turned back to the chalkboard in confusion. Everything had just fallen into place and again, he had done something before he could fully understand what he was doing. _Why can't I keep my mouth shut!_ **"Um…hello?"**

She shook herself free of the shock and smiled in a downright seductive way. "Very good Tsukune-kun, I'm glad to see you're paying attention…even if it looks like you aren't."

He resisted the almost overwhelming urge to wipe the sweat from his forehead in relief. He couldn't resist the desire to look back at the question though, and while it was slightly more advanced than what they had been learning previously, it still fit in with his studies. How it came together in his mind so simply had him a bit stunned though. He had never been overly smart before. _Maybe the studying with Moka-san is paying off!_

They hadn't had their study sessions in over two weeks now, since his confession had gone so horribly awry. Still, it felt good that he hadn't zoned out completely during the ensuing days, otherwise that question would have made him look like even more of an idiot than he felt.

On the other hand, Moka was having just as much of a problem concentrating on class as her fellow vampire. She felt drawn to him, to the crimson eyes staring at nothing in particular out the window. The changes to his body over the years had almost been too much for her, but apparently not enough. Now was a different story. She could even sense her inner self looking him over appreciatively, studying the silver hair that caught the sunlight so beautifully.

When he was a human with the desire to protect and befriend her it had been hard; as a Ghoul with the desire and _power_ to protect her even harder; but now as a full-fledged Vampire Moka Akashiya felt a pull stronger than anything she had ever encountered before. As a Vampire, he was more than her every dream come true, and as a Blood Sage, wielder of the heralded ketsueki karite skill, he could very well be stronger than her. The desire to test herself against him was overpowering, the desire to see if he really could best her even more so. Just his appearance had arousal firing through her, _all_ of her, and she wanted to see his strength so much it almost hurt. She wanted to be with him so, so badly—_had_ wanted to be with him even before—but she needed to do that first.

He was adapting surprisingly well, though for once she had no other experience or information to go off of. She had never seen a human turn into a vampire before, and she had never been told of it either, probably to stop this very thing from happening. She had fallen in love with a human, and now as a vampire she found him all but irresistible. Instinct was still clearly driving most of his actions, but he was fighting it, wrestling it back into his control. The very fact that his Youki had an underlay to it as kind as his personality when vampires were a warlike species by nature testified to that.

He was changing in accordance with his new powers, and the most recent child of the night was already exhibiting signs of the increased intelligence most vampires were born with naturally. Every passing second she found her heart ensnared in chains even heavier than the last, and the truly alarming detail was it was of her own free will. It hurt her to know she had rejected him, but if she hadn't they wouldn't even know about this new potential he had unlocked.

She hated irony.

By the time the lunch bell rang she was horrified to notice she had spent all her time doodling in the margins of her notebooks. Her inner self might have berated her on that had she not been just as caught up in what she was doing as her outer self. She noted his lack of a lunchbox, and though that wasn't really surprising considering the cafeteria, a thought came to mind instantly.

"Tsukune!"

His head swiveled instantly to her at the call, even as he was getting up. **"Yes, Moka-san?"**

A shiver rushed through her at hearing her name called in his new voice, but she quickly shook it off. "Do you want me to help you pick out lunch? I can give you a crash course on safe foods…if you want."

Relief flooded his eyes, and she felt warmth spring through her. Before either of them knew what was happening he was hugging her, and she felt her entire body blossom in the hottest red imaginable. His warmth was intoxicating, and his larger frame encompassed her like never before. If felt, put simply, _safe_.

There were more than many muted mutters of malcontent concerning his manhandling of Moka, but no one was about to speak up to the vampire in the presence of a teacher. Or to a vampire; period.

When he came to his senses he backed away instantaneously in terror, nearly dropping her flat to the ground in the process. **"I-I'm sorry Moka-san! It's just…damn it…everything…everything just sort of…**_**happens**_** now. I barely get time to think of what I want to do before I'm doing it!"** He was clearly struggling for words, trying to put what was going on inside him into verbal form and failing miserably. **"I was just so relieved, and then…then…"**

The desire to blush again came back twofold. He was running on instinct, just like she knew, but some part of her recognized that would only be what he would want to do without inhibitions. It would still be _him_ doing it. _How many other times has he wanted to hug me but been too scared to do it?_

Inner Moka turned her head downwards. She knew where his fear had come from. The irony never failed; now she _wanted_ him to touch her, and he was too afraid to.

"It's okay, I know. I expected this to happen. You're not used to the constant state of heightened awareness, and you're reacting before you realize it. Of all that I can't expect, this one seemed pretty normal."

He grinned. **"Define 'normal.'"**

She laughed. "_Our_ normal."

"**Well, that pretty much explains everything, doesn't it?"** Even the other three off to the side had to laugh at that. It was so true it was sad.

"If you slept through yesterday like you should have, then it's no wonder you were so thirsty this morning! Nothing like an unavoidable diet to make you hungry!"

"**Yeah, and one rice ball doesn't really do anything when you get **_**that**_** hungry."**

Moka cocked her head to the side with a confused pout. "You ate a rice ball? Normally that'd make you pretty sick…"

"**Oh, Kokoa-chan gave it to me, so it was alright!"** he explained with a friendly smile, and Moka's eyes went three times their natural size.

"You met Kokoa this morning? Is _that_ why you were late?"

Tsukune rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. **"She caught me doing some katas outside the dorm, and…well…she didn't take too well to my new look."** The girls around him winced. They could only imagine. **"I managed to avoid being pounded into a bloody pulp, we had a little talk, and she let me off with a death threat and a rice ball, so I think it all worked out in the end!"**

"For now," the pink-haired vampire groaned.

"**For now."**

"Then come on, let's go get some lunch people! I'm starving!" Kurumu shouted excitedly as she jumped onto Tsukune's back and nuzzled his neck affectionately, turning the vampire's pale skin an interesting shade of red.

With Kurumu and Yukari practically hanging from him, the four made their way to the cafeteria.

…

After what had indeed been a crash course in potentially sickening foods, Tsukune had been devastated to learn that some of his favorite dishes required too much water to eat safely. Naturally, he had been beyond delighted when Moka told him of the equivalents, and the special menu that was made to cater to certain Ayashi not able to eat regular food.

It felt nice to be able to talk with her again, though his broken heart throbbed every time he tried to think of ways to show her he had changed. He was still so new to the vampire thing he didn't want to do exactly what Kokoa was afraid of and disgrace a race he was now part of. He above anyone knew the true Moka, and the fear of acting against her standards was debilitating. He could only be himself, and that had been exactly what she had rejected.

Suddenly he wasn't all that hungry, and the food already in his stomach churned.

_Great, just great. The rate I'm going there'll be no point to me turning into a vampire in the first place!_

Kokoa had joined them at their table, refraining from trying to beat the vampire out of Moka for the moment. She seemed to sense something was amiss, and her eyes trailed lazily over to him. "Somethin' up?"

Grasping hastily for a reason to pacify her well-founded concern, something came to mind. **"No, not really. I'm just wondering…what's a 'Blood Sage?'"**

She started coughing violently as she tried to choke down her mouthful of food, and Moka just barely succeeded in concealing her fleeting coughs. "How in the hell do you even know what that is!" she screeched hysterically.

The former human scooted back in his seat at the reaction. **"When I was waking up a couple days ago I heard Moka-san and the others talking about it. Curiosity I guess."**

"They're vampires that've learned how to use the supernatural power in the blood of their Ayashi victims before it was used as food. Only the really old ones that lived during the warring times have that title now!"

There was a long stretch of silence as he and the others chewed their food, but then they _saw_ the realization hit him, because what little color was left in his face drained away. Wide eyes turned to an uncomfortable Moka, who looked like she was trying to hide under her plate. **"Moka-san…?"** The question hung in the air unspoken, but they all knew what he was asking.

She hesitated, but answered nonetheless. "Ruby-san thinks it's because your body got so used to absorbing the supernatural power of my blood that it's doing the same now that you drink it. Mizore-chan didn't make that ice the other day Tsukune…you did."

Kokoa had now turned a shade of white reminiscent only of a hospital. "Are you telling me…_he's_ a Chi no Kenja?"

Her sister only nodded. "It's the only explanation we could come up with."

It took a moment, but eventually she simply sagged back into her chair with her arms crossed. "I don't believe you."

The other women almost fell out of their chairs. If nothing else, she was good at denial. Another topic for discussion wasn't needed because they soon found themselves interrupted, and rather rudely at that.

"Hey Senpai! Fight me!"

Those present looked around in confusion, that is until they came upon a quite arrogant-looking monster standing in front of their table. Arrogance he had, to the point of cockiness even, but that didn't mean much to the group. Kurumu eyed him up and down with the finality only a Succubus could give it, and eventually scoffed lightly. "You look alright, but I think I'll pass."

The younger boy fought off the embarrassed flush. "No not you, the vampire!"

Tsukune looked at Kokoa in shock. **"Wow Kokoa-chan, I forgot people can call you Senpai now. You must be getting pretty famous in class."**

The tick developing over the teen's eyebrow couldn't be healthy. "No, not the shorty! You, you moron!"

He might have continued too, had he not been smashed into the ground by a giant hammer. An incensed redhead stood over his unconscious form, fuming. "Watch your manners around your betters, _kohai._" Stalking back to the table in barely-restrained fury, Yukari beamed at her.

"Way to show 'em, Kokoa-san!" She smiled at that, letting her regular pride bleed back into her confidence.

"Whatever! That was a cheap move! He was challenging Aono-senpai over there, not you!" the monster that had been surprisingly unnoticed right beside his now unconscious friend raged.

Tsukune stood from the table, and the girls scooted back at the way his silver hair covered his eyes. **"So you're saying it's her fault for the challenger not being ready to be taken up on his challenge?"**

The new monster recoiled at the dark tone in the even darker voice. "N-No! But he said you!"

"**No, he didn't. He distinctly said 'vampire' if I'm not mistaken. Kokoa-chan had every right to take him up on it."**

"Quit yapping crap! You want a fight, you got one!"

He was quickly charged by the new assailant, and Tsukune couldn't help but notice how _slow_ he seemed. Even when he had fought Kokoa earlier in the morning, he had still been able to keep up with movements that once would have eluded him completely. His training with the inner Moka allowed him many feats he had never been capable of before, but in his new form it seemed even slower than usual. Evading was simple, just a half-step to the side and the attacker was thrown totally off-balance, leading into yet another perfectly telegraphed punch that was easily read and avoided. Of course, by doing that he was only making him angrier.

"**H-Hey, come on! What'd I do!"** he yelled as he dodged another punch while weaving through the outdoor cafeteria's tables and their occupants. The courtyard wasn't very far away, and soon enough he had more space to maneuver in, though his younger challenger continued to get more and more frustrated as time went on.

"Come on! You're a vampire! That's reason enough ain't it!"

The area was suddenly lit up by the flare of demonic energy that burned from Tsukune's body, and he caught the next punch in one hand. The temperature must have dropped ten degrees, because a perpetually season-less climate was suddenly covered in frost. Red eyes scorched into their opponent's frightened face as his power climbed around them, and he just only resisted crushing the offending appendage in his hand.

"**You need to calm down and chill out, or you'll really end up getting hurt."**

The monster pulled back his numb hand in shock, and Tsukune turned back to his table, suddenly repulsed he had wasted the time on the trivial being.

"That's exactly what I'm talking about, you damn vampire!"

Tsukune didn't even look back, he didn't need to. A spike of ice so tall it rivaled the school tower shot up from the ground, encasing the irate monster in its frozen prison. He had felt it the moment he had gotten angry enough, knew the cold power radiating from inside him was Mizore's leftover blood. There wasn't much left, but there was enough for what he had needed. _How_ he knew that he didn't know, but he wasn't about to question his instincts after what happened. He _had_ changed, even more than he originally thought, and that didn't bother him one bit. There was one thing that would _never_ change though. He could allow many things, but letting any of his friends, especially Moka, be insulted so blatantly was _not_ one of them.

The tower of ice shattered into a million harmless shards, and the monster at the center was left shivering, both in cold _and_ fear.

He glared over his shoulder, and if possible the First Year shrunk back further. **"Maybe that'll cool you down. I don't like fighting, but I will when I have to. Don't you **_**ever**_** insult them again!"**

The cafeteria was silent, those who had watched the First Year try to fight his Third Year superior barely blinking in fear of being the next ice sculpture. Tsukune was known all over the school for three things: his girls, his reliability, and his kindness. No one had ever seen Tsukune Aono mad, and this time he was just insulted. Needless to say, a new legend regarding the soft-spoken teen was born that day. Never, under any circumstances, get him angry.

Kokoa was nothing but an open-mouthed, babbling mess when he returned to the table, and he couldn't help but laugh at the look on her face. He was kind of uncomfortable with the looks the others were giving him though, and Kurumu fanned herself hotly.

"Whew, I think I just fell in love with you all over again!"

And he consequently missed his chair sitting down.

They all failed in concealing their laughter—even Tsukune—at that. Still trying to fight off her giggles, Moka looked at him softly. "You know Tsukune, _you _are one of us now too. He wasn't just insulting Kokoa and I." It was just like him to think of others before he even bothered worrying about himself.

He grinned in embarrassment. **"R-Right. Keep forgetting, you know? I let him off easy, it would have been better had I taken off your Rosario and let **_**you**_** deal with him."**

That time Kokoa laughed maniacally. "It would have been worth it to see Onee-sama wipe the floor with him!"

Moka chuckled nervously. True, her inner self _would_ have done that, but it would have been a much faster ordeal than most would expect for the injustice of insulting her. There was one thing driving her instincts now, and she knew first chance she got she would have jumped Tsukune. She was _going _to fight him. It wasn't a probability, there was no _chance_ involved. It was a fact, and would there ever be fireworks when it happened.

"You're a natural with ice, Tsukune. I knew we were a lot alike," Mizore muttered in her gentle voice, and he smiled despite himself.

"**I wish I could take credit for it, but it was another one of those things that just kind of happened. I do know it used up the last of your Youki I had in me, so it won't be happening again today."**

Nonetheless, she smiled. "I could help train you with my abilities after school some days if you want. I'm sure it would come in handy. Reverse Moka has already taught you pretty much everything you need to know about fighting as a vampire when she was training you to use your Ghoul abilities, but that she can't teach you."

The warm smile back had Moka's stomach twisting, though she knew a vampire's morals were significantly different than humans'. In fact that didn't bother her at all, it was that she might not end up being with him even _with_ that that caused her to worry. **"You know, I think I'd like that. I'll be sure to take less blood from you in the morning on those days then. Is that okay?"**

"Couldn't have said it better myself."

"No faaaiiirrr! Tsukune has to train with me too! I'm sure he'd be great at illusions and witchcraft!" Kurumu exclaimed happily as she pasted herself to his side, and he had to smirk at her enthusiasm.

"**Sounds like a plan."** The need for blood had already been pounded into his mind; the thirst was not something to be ignored. He figured he might as well expand his skill-set since he had to drink their blood to survive in any case.

"Would you like me to teach you how to cook, Tsukune?" the emerald-eyed vampire asked timidly. She couldn't stand the thought of him spending so much time with them, _alone_. He looked at her with wide eyes and gulped heavily. "My other self taught you how to fight, but I can teach you how to live as a vampire now that you share all of my weaknesses. You'll need some of my herbal pills if you ever want to take a bath again anyways."

The thought of him in a bath _with_ Moka came to mind unexpectedly, and he had to fight down the blush that wanted to rise on his pale cheeks.

Yukari however, had no such reservations. "Right on ~desu! We can all have a bath together!"

They lit up like Christmas trees.

…

Training had been put off until Mizore recovered completely, and since he didn't want to feed from Kurumu until tomorrow when he'd really need it, it was decided they'd just walk back from school together. The Newspaper Club hadn't been very busy lately, though Tsukune made a mental note to do a column on prejudice against vampires later. It was with great joy he found himself walking beside Moka back to the dorms, but some part of him still ached every time he was around her.

He stopped when he noticed that she was no longer beside him, and turned around to see her a few feet behind him; her long pink bangs covering her stunning green eyes from view. **"Moka-san? Are you okay?"**

The ensuing silence was suffocating, and he gulped nervously.

Finally she looked up at him, and he could see the wetness invading her eyes. "Tsukune, I know this could never be enough to excuse what I did to you, but I have to say it. I'm…I'm sorry, Tsukune. I feel like such a stupid ditz for saying this _after_ you turn into a vampire, but believe me, I'm really sorry. It's just…"

She felt a hand gently grip her chin, and even as her mind was computing that, soft flesh met her lips.

Emerald eyes opened wide in shock before fluttering closed as warmth spread through her, not caring in the slightest that she had yet to fight him. His lips were just like she had always imagined them; gentle, with a careful insistence behind them that coaxed her own to meet his loving motions. She had never felt anything like it in her life, and this time she couldn't find any desire within herself to pull away. She practically fell into him, into the desire that was burning deep in their bodies, into their first kiss. It was hot and cold, terrifying and exhilarating all at the same time, and when he removed himself from her lips she couldn't withhold the whine of disappointment.

A blush greater than anything in her life now adorned her body, but Tsukune only seemed slightly flushed. If anything, he looked apologetic. **"I would write that off as instinctive, but that time I knew perfectly well what I wanted to do. I could never hate you, and I know I'll be paying for that little stunt in spades next time I need to remove your Rosario, but I had to let you know. I'm sorry too Moka-san, because I'll always love you no matter what you do to me.**

"**I'll find some way for you to accept me, so until then, maybe it's best if we held off on those cooking lessons. I want nothing more than to be around you, but doing that****…****hurts right now. Until I can hold you, **_**both**_** of you, without fear; until I know that you love me back or don't love me at all. If this isn't love I don't know what it is, but I love you."** Her glistening eyes kept watering, but then he continued. **"I love you, but I also love Mizore-chan, Kurumu-chan, even Ruby-san has a place in my heart. I tore off that lock just to see if this could happen, if I had one last chance with you, but I won't keep hurting them if it's not possible. I need to know what to do; if you really don't love me after that, at least then I can move on."**

Her heart stung at his words, but he was right. He had every right to move on, but the thing was she _did_ love him. She knew her inner self did too, probably even more than she did for it to be affecting her as much as it was, but she couldn't bring herself to say it to someone she didn't believe her equal. He was a vampire now, the same race she was, and truth be told she was starting to care less and less about fighting him after that kiss. It was something she had to do though. She simply had to see.

"…Fight me." The words were soft, barely noticeable even in the all but noiseless environment, but Tsukune's enhanced hearing picked it up.

"**What?"**

She inhaled, steeling her heart within her. "Fight me. Challenge me, the Vampire Moka Akashiya. Beat down my pride, _make_ me see you. If you can do that, you'll get your answer." He looked horrified at the thought, and sorrow twisted her features. "If you can't…then you already know, don't you?"

She walked away, down the fork that lead to the female dorms and away from the man she loved. As much as she had tried to prepare herself for it, the pain of her heart only increased, and all because of her stupid pride. So lost was she in reflection, when her inner self spoke up she almost jumped.

_**Steal Belmont.**_

The simple command had her reeling. It wasn't a choice, there was no if's, and's, or but's; those two words had spoken in no uncertain terms that she was to take the headmaster's priceless whip. _W-Why?_

_**Steal that whip or so help me I'll give you the worst migraines you've ever had for the rest of our godforsaken life!**_

She shrunk back in fear, if only mentally.

Inside her seal, Inner Moka rubbed her lips softly. _**If he won't challenge me…I'll challenge him.**_

…

Tsukune was still in shock, both over what he had done and what was said afterwards. Nothing was ever easy, not with him. He loved her, but he couldn't stand the thought of fighting a woman. Call him old-fashioned, but he had been raised to be kind to girls, not to hit them. He knew she would be insulted if he ever said that to her as an excuse. She would expect him to go all-out, just like he was sure she would.

The catch was: could he do it?

As he neared the dorm, imagine his surprise when he saw a group of Youkai there, and from the way they straightened when he approached, they had been waiting for him.

"Hey Vampire, we heard how you dealt with our buddy at lunch. How about you fight us too?"

He sighed. As much as he didn't want to admit it, this was exactly what he needed right now. His blood roared in delight of the possible bloodshed, and a smile more menacing than anything Tsukune had ever created before came to life on his face.

"**Just remember, **_**you**_** challenged **_**me.**_**"**

It was going to be a long week.

…

**Author's Notes:** And another chapter done. Thank you everyone for the reviews, I'm glad you're all liking my story. At first I wanted it to be more monogamous, but in keeping the characters in their personalities I don't know if this is going to turn into more of a harem or not now. Tell me your opinion on the subject, I'd like to know. Also, I know the bold print can get kind of annoying after a while, but it'll be better after he's sealed. I just like the thought of something noticeable to show his changes. As a side note, I like to read all the stuff here in 3/4 format, it helps keep the paragraphs on a larger screen. Just thought I'd throw that out there.

Reviews are always appreciated. They keep the morale up, LOL!

Hope you enjoyed the chapter!


	4. To Challenge A Vampire

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Rosario+Vampire, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story. Simple enough, ne? Just don't copy from this story and we're all good!

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**To Challenge A Vampire**

**.**

There were some aspects to being a vampire that would never cease to amaze the fledgling that had just joined their ranks. As a Ghoul he had been privy to many of the abilities of his benefactor, with none of their weaknesses, other than one very detrimental one that involved his consciousness ceasing to exist. As a full-blooded vampire it was a different story. Powers that he had once been scared to use too heavily came naturally, and fighting skills honed through terrible hours of practice were enhanced even more than before.

He had ripped into the group of Youkai that had challenged him yesterday with an ease that he had only seen on one other, and had he not tried to save them serious injury that little bat might have found work as a match counter for _him_. He had been so frustrated he hadn't even questioned whether or not he should fight, instead it was whether or not he should hold back. It went without saying what the answer turned out to be. As much as he was now a vampire, one of the most feared and bloodthirsty races there were, his personality hadn't changed.

They were all in the infirmary, even with him holding back. He did feel kind of bad about that.

If there was one thing he was regretting, it wasn't that he had told Moka his true feelings, instead it was that he hadn't gone to her room before he had. As bad as it seemed, he really wished he had gotten some of those herbal pills she had mentioned, because he hadn't bathed in two days. Well, his dip in the sea could possibly be counted, but that hadn't been the most cleansing experience. He could only throw his battle-scuffed clothing into his hamper and pick out something else.

Passing the time had been nothing short of torture, and he even found himself finishing his homework before the night was done. Normally that was something he did with Moka and their group, though Kurumu didn't get most of it. He didn't even really understand how he had focused enough to do that in the first place, considering he had been completely absorbed in what to do the entire night.

Fighting women was, as a general rule, forbidden in his mind. Hitting Ruby—even though she had nearly killed him at the time—back at their first meeting had been hard enough; knowingly fighting the woman he wanted nothing more than to love was a monumental undertaking. Added to that Mizore's confession and his situation in the most 'normal' of times, and Tsukune was so mentally exhausted by the end of the evening he flopped into bed and was asleep before his head even hit the pillow.

That night he dreamt of her. It wasn't his pink-haired goddess, but rather his silver-haired vampiress, the woman that seemed to be forever out of his reach. It wouldn't have been the first time she had haunted his fantasies, beckoned him to her alabaster beauty covered only by the darkest of red silk sheets. This time even his dreams offered him no escape, and instead faced him with his deepest fears, his every uncertainty. Even as the light bounced off skin just as pale as hers as his hand reached out, she was never close to his grasp, eternally running away, just as she had that day. Why couldn't she understand how much he loved her, how much she didn't have to be alone anymore?

Anger and heartache tore at his chest, and he awoke in a cold sweat, not in the least bit rested. He groaned when he saw the digital readout of his alarm clock and silently wished he had another eight hours to sleep. Of course, it didn't happen, and he pulled himself out of bed grudgingly. In a fresh uniform but unclean body, he realized he couldn't even brush his teeth anymore. That was plain unhygienic, especially for a Vampire. _That_ still managed to get him to chuckle, though he was quickly sobered by the melancholy that didn't seem to want to leave him alone.

_I really need to get some of those herbal capsules today. Kokoa-chan would have some; she's my best bet for the moment._

He really needed a bath. At this point he just wanted to sink into the water and melt, responsibilities be damned. If the days kept continuing like they had so far he'd go insane if he couldn't. How else could he relax anymore? He honestly didn't know what he'd do next time he was alone around Mizore, and that scared him because she had so generously offered him her blood, and god would he be lying if he said he didn't need it. Kurumu was always dangerous, especially now that he was having trouble reining in his more base desires, so that ruled out her. Ruby was a threat in her own way, because she'd probably _like_ whatever he unintentionally did, and there was no safe way to be around Yukari; not with _her_ mind. For the youngest out of all of them, she was probably the most dangerous even.

Honestly, it sucked. The platonic relationships he had held for nearly three years were becoming unbalanced. No longer could he go to any one of them just to _be with_ them, not without giving any of the others the wrong idea anymore. It wouldn't matter to Yukari or Ruby, but it would hurt Kurumu. Mizore…he didn't know what it would do to her, but he didn't want to risk it nowadays.

The walk to school was a daze, and the thirst never really hit him until he was pulled down into one of Kurumu's trademarked embraces outside the gates, where the rest of their group was waiting.

"Good morning, Tsukune!"

Even as he was choked by the cotton of her sweater her aroma filled him, pulled his memory back to when he had drank her blood the first time at the hospital. It was so different from Mizore's, yet no less enticing by any sense of the term. The Succubus blushed a bright red when Tsukune pulled himself out of her hold like it was less than nothing and jammed his nose into her neck, impatiently memorizing the smell of her petite body. It went without saying the others—including the Succubus herself—were rather surprised at how easily he had escaped her usual smothering, but she certainly didn't seem to be complaining.

"Go on Tsukune, it's my turn today!"

If he had any self control left that quickly and thoroughly shredded it to ribbons. Since he had once again forgone eating anything of substance before he had left he had no choice, and as usual he didn't notice the body in his grip convulse as his fangs plunged through the supple flesh of her neck.

Her taste was almost the polar opposite of Mizore. Where the Snow Woman's blood was cold like water just melted from ice, the Succubus' was hot and tangy, nearly liquid sugar to his senses. It filled his body with warmth he knew only her heart could create, and it made his skin tingle as fresh awareness lit up his body. Now that he was more attuned to the strange power he had he could feel her strength flow into him, the mystic unknown of a mind's malady; the power of illusions. It felt like his very imagination had become a weapon, and the power whispered words of courage, promising its help in making his foes suffer his every machination.

As he licked the wounds closed she shuddered again, and he suddenly had new respect for the Succubus who hid her great power so unassumingly. She was limp in his grip for a few moments, but seemed to regain herself fast enough, for she was soon hugging him tightly again. He chuckled for the second time that day as he gave her a reassuring squeeze, and she jumped from his arms happily.

"**You're…amazing, Kurumu-chan."** She turned red under his praise, and the others looked at him expectantly for an explanation to that unexpected comment. **"I can feel it; the power you have. It's…it's indescribable. The illusions feel so strong, it's like I could do anything!"**

She smirked proudly. "Never underestimate a Succubus! Charms and Illusions are our specialty!"

Kokoa snorted in a very unladylike way. "I still can't believe _you're_ a Blood Sage. With that power at your command you're even more of a threat at this school than you would be even as a normal Vampire!"

"Are the rumors really true, Tsukune-san?" Yukari squealed merrily. "Did you really send twenty students to the hospital yesterday?"

Tsukune looked horrified. **"Of course not!"** He paused there for a second, to think that over. **"I think it was ten actually."** The looks on the faces around him turned positively comical, and he waved his hands in front of him frantically. **"H-Hey! They challenged me! I was just defending myself!"**

"Hmph," Kokoa grunted approvingly, "seems the weakling does know how to defend his honor after all. You're a Vampire, one of a proud race; I'd be ashamed if you backed down."

Well, at least his lack of patience yesterday had turned out to be a good thing. Moka's absence was noted with a sense of painful relief, because though he didn't want to see her, there were too many parts of him that wished he could. As tired as he was he wasn't even sure he could fight against the parts that wanted to, but at least Kurumu's blood had energized him enough that he didn't look like he was about to fall asleep on his feet.

"**I'm beginning to see why Moka-san wanted that seal."**

His redheaded junior just shrugged before they turned to go to school.

…

Putting on his regular energetic and cheery persona for the rest of the day when he felt so tired was quite a task, even for him. It didn't help that he could hear the whispers of those he passed in the hall, and though a good many of them were complimentary to his new appearance, there were a few that were far more critical. The rumors were really getting ridiculous by that time, and he had to admit even _he_ would be afraid of himself if some of what they said was actually true.

Really, they were the ones that kept challenging him, why should he be the one they talked bad about? Still, it looked like it wasn't about to end any time soon, not if the stories kept growing as they had been.

He had never been happier when he finally walked into the sanctuary of the Newspaper Club clubroom after school. Sinking into one of the chairs, the young vampire rested his head on the desk in front of him and momentarily contemplated smacking his sleep-deprived cranium into the hard oak. He was the first one there, or so he thought, so at last he was allowed some peace and quiet. It wasn't that he didn't like the company of his friends, but they could hardly go anywhere without some monster with a god complex showing up and challenging the only visibly unsealed vampire among their group. It did offer some sense of relief however, that of the comedic persuasion, because Kokoa had dealt with more than one of them in an irate fury.

Moka had been there, but they had both been too pained to look at each other. He wanted to talk to her, he wanted things to go back to the way they used to be, but he couldn't. She had told him plainly what he needed to do, he just needed to pull out the courage to do it. He had never won against her before in training, not once, but that wasn't what had him hesitating. He was different than he was before, he could feel it in every cell of his once human body, but to fight her seriously…

"Are you alright, Tsukune-san?"

He nearly hit his head on the roof when the gentle voice called out to him, and the soft hand put on his shoulder didn't help matters. With the way things had been going lately he was up and around in a second, grabbing the hand and pushing the body to the table in front of him in a submission hold. When he finally realized his instincts had no need to react to the _woman_ he was holding down, he backed off like she was on fire.

"**I-I'm so sorry Ruby-san! I didn't know it was you!"** he apologized frenetically, but the way Ruby was shivering didn't really look like that of _pain_. Her face was almost completely flushed when she straightened herself out to look at him, and the look in her eyes was, if anything, _gratitude_.

"Such a warm greeting! Thank you, Tsukune-san!" She hugged him just like Kurumu was known to do so often, and his pale skin warmed at the unfamiliar flesh being pressed against him. When she finally let go of him she looked him up and down at length, taking in all of his changes more comprehensively than the meager examination she had been able to do at the hospital. "The headmaster was right, you really do make a good vampire."

He rubbed the back of his head embarrassedly. **"T-Thank you."**

"But I did mean what I asked; are you alright? You looked kinda down. I suppose the first few days after the transformation would be kind of overwhelming, wouldn't they?"

Tsukune could only nod. She had hit the nail on the head, even if she didn't know the true broadness of the subject she was broaching. **"You could say that, yeah. I never know when some idiot who fancies himself the next big thing will try to take me down. Heck, I had two at lunch **_**again**_** today!"**

She smiled sympathetically. "The headmaster expected that. You've been giving the hospital staff more work than they've had since the riot during your first year!"

He rubbed his face in frustration. **"Not exactly helping."**

"Oh, hehe, sorry…"

The vampire slumped back into the chair he had been in, cradling his head in his hands and trying to get rid of the headache that hadn't seemed to have ever left him. **"I'm just so…lost. I don't know what to do. I mean really, what the hell was I thinking! 'If I become a vampire, everything will work out?' **_**What**_** would work out? I chose to tear off that lock, I had made up my mind that it would either work or I would die trying! Look at me! I've jumped from the weakest hunted to the strongest hunter! I took one gigantic leap forward and, for some unknown reason, decided where I started off was better! Dammit I…I just don't know what to do anymore."**

Ruby looked at him empathetically. She could see the weight on his shoulders, one that had been gradually building ever since he was fifteen years old. He had dealt with more in three years than most humans would deal with given three lifetimes, but he was still only eighteen years old. His now immortal life was just beginning, and the lines of everything he had tried to keep clear were now blurring. She wasn't stupid; she, just like all of them, knew of Tsukune's kindness. He didn't want to hurt any of them, and he knew that was exactly what he was going to do if he kept going like this. Underneath the fearsome demonic energy and dazzling physical changes, he was still just a confused young man.

He tensed for only an instant when he felt arms wrap around him from behind, but he was too exhausted to care. The contact was exactly what he needed, a reassuring hold to keep him from falling apart. He allowed himself to relax into her warm arms and closed his tired red eyes. At that moment he didn't care what idea the others got, he just didn't care. He needed this.

"Everything _will_ work out, Tsukune-san, just give it some time. You're allowed to vent, confusion is ordinary. You'll understand what you need to do soon enough, I'm sure of that. Don't worry, more than just me will be there if you ever stumble, you never have to worry about that."

God he was so tired, and her words just made him feel worse. **"I don't deserve you…any of you…"** And before the eldest witch in Youkai Academy knew it, the former human in her arms had fallen asleep with his head on the table.

Unwinding her arms from around him, the oldest member of their group watched him silently, studying the peaceful yet tormented expression he could hold even when sleeping. He must have been drained more than any of them could appreciate for him to fall asleep so carelessly, but she would be lying if she said she didn't enjoy the calm it brought to her heart. She turned to the door quietly. "You can come in now, I know you're there."

The door opened with the same small creak it always did, but it was noticeably more careful this time. Moka stood in the threshold, obviously trying to look like she hadn't heard every word. She took in the scene as calmly as she could, displaying just enough reaction at his sleeping form to suggest she hadn't been there the entire time.

"He's really tired, isn't he?"

The assistant advisor to the Newspaper Club made a noncommittal gesture with her head. "He's been dealing with a lot these past few days. Anyone else would have slept for a _week_ after going out for a swim in their greatest weakness during a storm of the same thing. Now _him_ on the other hand, he jumps back after only a day, and _still_ has enough strength to fight off every challenger that comes before him. When he was a Ghoul he was scary, now he's downright terrifying. The funny thing is he doesn't even know it."

"It's almost like he was born to become a vampire…"

Ruby almost laughed, but she did smile warmly. "A vampire? Maybe. I think he was simply born for greatness, but he's too humble to realize it. He's more of a 'boundary being' than Yukari-chan or I could ever hope to be." She raised her hand into the air with all five fingers clenched, and slowly began counting them open. "He was a human, who befriended a Vampire, who gained the attention of a Succubus, who earned the adoration of a genius Witch, who drew the interest of a Snow Woman, and saved the humanity in another Witch who had lost all but the smallest light of hope. He's the glue that's kept _five_ races together for almost three years.

"He fought battles upon battles in a human shell barely capable of handling the slightest bit of Youkai strength, and almost died countless times trying to prove his worth. From a human to a Ghoul, he kept fighting, and gained control of supernatural power he should have had no inkling of like he had been born with it. But that's not the problem now, is it?" The older woman looked at Moka cryptically, and for some reason she felt the urge to shy away under that gaze. "Now as a Vampire in every right, you're scared of him, aren't you?"

Both Inner and Outer Moka went stiff, shocked at that conclusion. "S-Scared? W-Why o-on earth would I be s-scared?"

Ruby walked straight up to her, peering unblinkingly into her emerald eyes with her own of wise pink. "Because you know he's done most of it for you." The finality in the statement made it all the harder to take. "Your pride made you reject him the first time, but then this happened, and he exceeded your every expectation. You had already dug yourself into a hole, but instead of letting him pull you up and admitting your failings, your pride made you keep on digging. Now you're down so deep you only know one way to get back up, even when you already know the most likely outcome. You need that, don't you? You need to see for yourself just how great he can be. It won't make your pride any easier to swallow, I can guarantee you that. My master…she paid with her life to learn that lesson."

She didn't show it half the time, but Moka was finally realizing that Ruby really _was_ older than their entire group. She had dealt with hatred the likes of which few of them could understand, worldviews that warped reality and hampered change, and loss so great she had been willing to destroy humanity. She was more observant than any of them gave her credit for, but somehow they managed to forget that in her masochistic tendencies.

"How…how do you know all that?" Moka rasped, fear and confusion plain on her face.

Ruby did laugh that time. "A little birdie told me. Don't worry, I won't tell him; you should do _that_ yourself. I would hurry up though if I were you, the longer you wait the less likely it is he'll understand."

_**You are a far more dangerous woman than I ever made you out to be before, Ruby Toujou,**_ Inner Moka thought seriously.

"Well, since it looks like our clubroom has turned into a makeshift dorm room, I think we'll just skip club for today. There's not too much to write about other than the whole 'Vampire Aono,' thing anyway, and that would just bring him more attention as it is. It was kind of funny really, he was so out of it he didn't even notice I was in here working on paperwork when he came in!"

Moka didn't really want to stay, not after being evaluated more comprehensively than she had even been able to do herself, but she saw an opening in her elder's last words. "Do you need any help?"

The witch smiled. "Nah, it's just advisor stuff for the club, nothing you'd be able to help out with. I got a lot done today though, so if you want to deliver it to the headmaster for me while I keep going I'd appreciate it!"

She could hardly believe her luck, and was able to keep a surprisingly straight face outwardly. "S-Sure! Where is it?"

Ruby walked over to the desk she had in the far corner of the room, and came back with a pile of papers to hand to the pink-haired vampire. "Here you go. If you see the others, be sure to remind them we won't be having club today. Who knows what they'd do with a sleeping Tsukune-san!"

Moka—_both_ of her—blushed what she hoped was inconspicuously at that. Probably the same things _she_ would do to him. "W-Well anyways, I'll be off!" She did exactly that, and quickly backed through the door she had come in through before taking off down the halls.

The elder witch chuckled as quietly as she could before she shut the door, after placing the appropriate sign over it naturally. Silently walking back over to where the other vampire lay sleeping, she gently stroked her fingers through his metallic hair. "She's really not in any better shape than you are, you know that Tsukune-san? She might have noticed she was leaving _me_ here alone with you otherwise. She's lucky I'd rather have you _awake_." She sighed softly, unable to fight the tingles shooting through her from his silken hair. "A vampire's pride is a terrible thing. You really were an amazing human, to be able to do _that_ to one even before you changed."

Looking down on his sleeping face, an ever-familiar warmth started simmering through her. Unable to resist, she leaned down and set a soft kiss against the corner of his mouth. She blushed as she held her lips and giggled. "Even though I'd prefer you awake, that doesn't mean I'm all that good against temptation either." She resumed stroking her fingers through his hair lovingly, unafraid of being interrupted.

"But really, that girl's just too predictable."

…

She didn't want to admit it, because it burned like water through her heart.

Ever since yesterday, she had known. Ruby was exactly right. She had dug herself into a hole, and instead of confessing her love she kept on digging. She was in too deep now, she would only look worse if she tried forgoing her plan at this point. She had just been given the key to that plan, however unknowingly. Moka Akashiya needed Belmont, because there was no way in hell she was asking Tsukune to remove her Rosario for her.

Her lips were still tingling from that kiss, the soft surprise he had given her the day before. It made her whole body burn just thinking about it, how gentle and warm his pale lips had been on her own. It hurt to know that he had done it, knowing full well her vampire self would repay him in force, when in fact it had had much the same effect on the vampire within as it had her.

She wanted more. She wanted so, so much _more_. She wanted to feel him, taste him, feel his fangs ravish her neck just as much as she wanted him to ravish _her_. She needed to be sure, that was one thing she couldn't put off. She _needed_ a reason to swallow her pride, something more physical than the intangibility of love fighting against the equally indefinable emotion of pride. As she was, she didn't even know if she wouldn't give herself to him anyway, even if he lost.

She couldn't worry about that now. The headmaster's office was unmistakably empty, but she had no idea where to look for such a priceless item. The room was dark and foreboding, and exuded character she would have normally found rather pleasant, was she not worrying about being expelled was she found rummaging through one of a Dark Lord's personal spaces.

Placing the papers on his desk, the first place she looked was the drawers, where nothing but a few unique odds-and-ends caught her eye. Not about to tarry in any place for too long, she quickly moved on, but each spot revealed less than the last. She was careful to make sure everything was in the same place she found it originally, but she was growing more nervous and frustrated by the second.

"If I was a priceless artifact, where would I be?"

"**Probably in the hands of my owner, would I not?"** a dark voice answered for her, and she squealed in a very un-vampire-like way. Whirling around like she was spring-loaded, her worst fears were confirmed when she saw the Exorcist standing calmly in one of the black corners of the room. The whip Belmont was coiled in one of his hands, and his strange eyes seemed to burn into her even in the darkness of the space. **"Looking for this, child?"** He asked as he held up the item in question.

"N-N-N-N-No!" she answered quickly, trying very much to look like she hadn't been caught with her hand in the rhetorical cookie jar.

"**Oh? May I inquire as to what you were doing by searching through my office then?"**

Fear settled in her stomach even though his tone was nothing if not lighthearted. He seemed to be enjoying setting her off-balance, and she knew there was no way to lie to the master of Youkai Academy in his own domain. She sighed wearily. "I…was looking for Belmont."

The man hidden beneath his robes chuckled, and she was sure he was disappointed his game had been brought to an end so soon. **"Was that so hard? I can only assume the reason you would be looking for the item able to release you from the Rosario's effects. It wouldn't happen to involve a certain fledgling member of your race, would it?"**

Inner Moka grit her teeth. He was playing with her, and he knew it. He just wanted to hear her say it.

"**Here. Let's find out straight from the horse's mouth."** Just like that he placed Belmont in her hands, and the seal was disregarded instantly. The elegant vampiress took her place as the rightful owner of her body and stood before the Dark Lord with anger smoldering in her bright scarlet eyes, but he only chuckled again. **"Such hostility could only mean I'm correct."**

She barred her fearsome fangs, though she wasn't willing to act out against the man who had saved Tsukune's life. _**"Now that this has happened, I have one more thing I need to teach him,"**_ she answered without missing a beat, and the barrier master raised an eyebrow.

"**Is that what they're calling it these days?"**

Even _she_ felt the flush wanting to rise up her neck, and she fought it down vigorously. _**"Your humor is not appreciated."**_

"**I thought it was rather ingenious myself, seeing that you were so brazenly risking expulsion for young Tsukune-kun."**

She glared at him. _**"Since it seems you know as well as I do what I want it for, why do you insist on playing these word games?"**_

"**Because I would rather not give the hospital staff even more work than they already have,"** he replied pointedly.** "Just yesterday our young friend sent ten mid to high class monsters to the infirmary, and his tally for today is already nearing the double digits, though I suppose your sister can take the blame for some of those. I find it truly remarkable how his reputation is still top-notch, but then again his habit of not fighting back unless provoked must be responsible for that. Even among monsters, he's a rather interesting case, isn't he?"**

Her hard eyes softened only slightly. _**"That he is. For them to **_**know**_** he's a vampire and still see him no differently than he was before…only Tsukune would be able to do that."**_

He nodded simply. **"Perhaps it's because of his humble origins? One with too much pride cannot sympathize with the masses, but a pauper turned prince would still be able to."**

The blow to her arrogance was plain as day, and she almost winced at the truth in his frank tone. _**"Perhaps."**_

The Exorcist grinned enigmatically at her, and she got the same feeling in her stomach as when she was listening to Ruby. **"You can't bring yourself to say it, can you? You vampires have always been an interesting lot, but your interactions with humans were always more fascinating because of that."** He chuckled, as if reliving memories. **"But back to the point. I will be willing to lend Belmont to you for this last 'session' of yours, but there are some conditions."**

The silver-haired vampire nodded. _**"I expected as much."**_

"**I would rather not have two S-Class monsters fighting on school grounds, so if I might suggest a change in location…"**

A pale eyebrow rose questioningly.

When they were done discussing the terms of the loan, the vampiress left his office with a wave of her metallic hair. The headmaster merely chuckled as he watched her go, and Lilith flew up from the flaps of his robes. The spirit of the Ririsu Mirror giggled wildly as she watched the vampire go, and shook her head pitifully.

"What a pathetic creature. Her pride is respectable, but I can see her true desires. She was fortunate those years ago, that her pride still held sway over her other wishes. I would love to see her face reflected in my mirror _now_."

Her master laughed quietly. **"Now now, Lilith,"** he chided mockingly.** "She simply doesn't know any other way to deal with her attraction. I have to admit, it will be a rather amusing match to watch, won't it?"**

The fairy laughed again. "Amusing? There's so much sexual tension between them it can't be anything but!"

He sighed finally as he sank down into his large chair. **"If things keep going the way they have been, the goal of this school may actually be reachable. I never expected the first ties to be made with a vampire no less.**

"**Tsukune-kun, for all your cowardice you were a rather frightening human, full of the chivalry and valor waning in your race. I can only imagine what you will accomplish now."**

…

When Tsukune Aono awoke he felt surprisingly better, though not entirely rested. After looking at the clock on the wall when he realized where he was, he figured out that was a good thing. If he hadn't woken up when he did, he might not have been able to get to sleep again that night. His rest had been mercifully dream free, though he felt soft warmth through much of it. Though not something he could explain, he definitely wasn't about to complain about it. It had felt wonderful.

His neck had a painfully tight cramp in it and his arms were both numb, but that was rectified easily enough. When his arms finally had blood flowing to them again he stretched tiredly, flashing his gleaming fangs as he yawned widely. **"Wow, that felt really good. I wonder if any of the others came by while I was sleeping?"**

"Nope. I cancelled club for today. Wasn't like there was much to write about anyways," Ruby said as she walked into his field of vision. Since his nerves were finally calm after the rest, he didn't jump like he had before, thankfully.

He looked at her warily. **"Were you here…the entire time?"**

The witch giggled. "It was only a couple of hours. Besides, I had work to do anyway, so I would have been here regardless. You were a nice addition to the scenery though."

Heat suffused his cheeks. Not knowing how to respond to the compliment, his brain went to another concern to get his mind off it. **"Oh, right! I still need to see Kokoa-chan today! I need some of her herbal capsules!"**

At that the headmaster's aide's eyes lit up, like she had just remembered something very important. "Oh my goodness, I can't believe I forgot! I'm so sorry Tsukune-san!"

He cocked his head to the side in confusion, and he responded with the ever-elegant, **"Huh?"**

She went over to the lockers on one of the sides of the room and opened the one she had claimed, pulling out a large plastic bag filled with what would look like drugs to the untrained eye. The tablets were pretty large, but they certainly didn't smell dangerous. "The headmaster gave me these for you yesterday, I just forgot to get them to you. I've also got your new room assignment for you!"

That startled him. "**Why do I get a new room?"**

"Because there are no baths in the shower rooms of the dorms," she explained like it was the simplest thing ever. "The women's dormitory has a couple in their shower area, but even so some rooms have been designed with their own bathrooms. Kokoa-san and Moka-san have ones, for example. You'll still have a kitchenette to make your own food, but your own bathroom would be pretty necessary, since we can't very well filter all of the water through the academy with herbal supplements."

Tsukune's ears burned. **"R-Right. Makes sense."**

"I'm really sorry Tsukune-san, I should have remembered yesterday when you told us about you splashing water on your face!"

He rubbed the back of his head, his face now completely red. **"I-It's okay. My fault for not asking really."**

Ruby pouted, but made no further argument. "Well, since I'm done I might as well show you to your new room. I can even help you move in some of your stuff if you want to!"

The young vampire almost choked. **"N-No, that's fine. I don't have very much stuff, it won't take me long."**

She eyed him skeptically. "If you say so. Alrighty, let's get going!"

…

The walk to the dorm was startlingly pleasant. He had almost forgotten how nice it was to talk to any one of his friends by themselves. Whenever they were all together things usually degenerated into some kind of mock brawl, and it was nice to just talk without being jumped by one, or all, of them. Of course, things hadn't been without incident, but one punch had dealt with that quickly enough. Ruby had sighed and called up the hospital, but they went on their way easily enough afterwards. It was almost scary how smoothly he had gotten used to being challenged.

She had been surprised by how honest he had been; his room really was scarcely decorated. He had the essentials, and a few more gifts he had been given over the course of his time there, but most everything he had could be fit into one large suitcase. Nevertheless, she had demanded she help, and so grudgingly the two made their way to his new room

It really wasn't that much different from his old room, other than the fact that it was bigger to allow for the full bathroom built in to one of the sides. Soon enough he was all set up, and Ruby took silent joy in the way she was the first one alone in his new room with him.

He flopped down onto his new mattress with a heavy sigh. **"You know, I'm glad you talked me into letting you help. That was harder than I thought it would be."**

Ruby laughed as she sat down beside him, and feeling the bed shift with the added weight, Tsukune shot upright with a blush once more coating his ashen cheeks. "I told you I was happy to help. Order me around however you like!"

Tsukune could feel the beginnings of sweat gathering at the back of his head. **"I could have gone without hearing you say **_**that**_**."**

She was the one that blushed that time, and fiddled with her various belts nervously. "Whoopsie, sorry…" The silence after that was rather awkward, and neither of them really liked that seeing as how the entire day had been so companionable before.

As if on cue, his stomach gurgled noisily. The discomfort was broken instantly as they both laughed at the unexpected noise, and he scratched the side of his neck nervously. He really needed to start paying better attention to his body. As a vampire, it could be hazardous to his health, but more importantly, the health of others.

"I may not be the best cook, but my master did teach me how to make some things. It'll be a good chance for me to show you how to use the herbal tablets as well. How about it?"

"**I couldn't possibly intrude any—"** His stomach cut him off again with a fierce growl, and he gave a longsuffering sigh. The thirst was definitely back, and some food would do him good. He couldn't wait until it died down to Moka's level, where she could feed once in the morning and be good with food for the rest of the day. **"If you wouldn't mind."**

Her feminine giggle made his skin tingle. "I already told you, didn't I? I'm sure Moka-san will be teaching you soon enough, so think of this as a…room-warming present!"

He couldn't help but laugh.

Her company was something he had never really spent an extended period of time in, at least not outside of that one day of training way back when. When her masochistic tendencies weren't at the forefront she was amazingly mature companionship, and they were able to talk almost the entire time they were preparing the meal. He learned the proper ratio of tablets to water, and was surprised by the potency of such a small capsule. He felt himself gravitating to her neck more than once, but he was able to control the urge much better now that he had a nap under his belt.

She smelled like sunflowers roasted in the sun and wild incense, likely from her study of her heritage's art. The more time passed the more he didn't know if he was smelling the food they were making or the delicious scent her body was giving off, but both were equally appealing. The witch gasped when she felt the soft skin of his nose and lips rubbing carefully down her neck, and she blushed brightly at the close contact even though she knew what he was really after. "As much as I'd like you to, you'd spoil your supper," she joked breathily, and the groan issued from deep in his chest had her thighs throbbing.

He pulled himself away guiltily, ashamed that even after all of his control he still hadn't been able to resist smelling the source up close. He licked his lips hungrily, taking in one last inhalation of her natural aroma. For all he fancied himself a peacekeeper, being a vampire around five women like them was absolute torment. He spoke before he could stop himself, something deep from the core of his long repressed urges. **"Dessert then."**

Ruby almost swooned right there. She had always imagined what he would sound like if he didn't ask her for something and instead told her, but nothing could have prepared her for the gravelly purr of his power-infused voice. The shiver that rocked through her went from the tips of her hair to the bottom of her toes, and she took a great, shuddering breath in to steady herself. "Sounds good to me," she croaked.

Trying to shake himself free of the trance her scent seemed to have on his body, Tsukune looked back at the food simmering on the modest oven. **"When did you learn to cook for vampires anyway?"**

Recognizing what he was trying to do, she pushed down the lust now simmering just as hot as the oven. "O-Oh, I hoped something like this might happen someday, so I read up on it. You vampires are a very secretive species, but the headmaster has plenty of scrolls and tomes dating _way_ back, so as his assistant I'm granted a bit of leniency in the area. Besides, it's really not all that different from regular cooking, you just need to be careful about what kind of water you use."

Tsukune was shocked she had thought so far ahead. **"W-Wow, I don't know what to say…"**

She smiled warmly. "'Thank you?'"

Blood rushed to his face. **"Thank you."**

Conversation at dinner was the same it had been the entire day, and he had to admit though she certainly didn't look it, Ruby was a surprisingly capable cook. Then again, he supposed she would have to be. Her parents had died when she was young, and it had only been her and her master for the longest time. She would have needed to learn to cook if she wanted to survive.

For the first time since he had turned, Tsukune actually felt good about himself. The day had started out horrible, but it had redeemed itself quite nicely from afternoon to evening. When he pushed his plate away the thirst had been curbed substantially, and he could also be glad he would be able to take a bath before he went to bed.

"**Thank you again, Ruby-san. You made this day worthwhile,"** he sighed out contently.

The urge to rub her legs together had been nigh impossible to ignore over supper, and she bit her bottom lip as the itch assaulted her again. Forget handsome, Tsukune's vampire form gave Inner Moka's beauty a run for its money, and the small smile playing upon his pale lips was more than enticing. "Y-You're welcome. Did you still want some blood?"

His deep crimson eyes honed in on her intensely, and she gulped. **"I always want blood. It's just easier to ignore sometimes."**

Flicking her long hair to one side, she exposed the neck covered partially by the top of her usual shirt's choker. "Help yourself."

He nodded solemnly before edging over to where she sat at the other side of the table. Her posture was perfect for the pillow she was sitting on, and he shifted himself behind her to once again inhale her natural perfume. She shivered as his hard body pressed itself to her back, and her hands bunched themselves in her skirt. She had seen firsthand what his bites had done to Mizore and Kurumu, but what he did before was just as stirring, if not more so. She would have to see.

_God _damn_, when did Tsukune-san become so sensual!_ She wailed mentally as she felt him trail up her neck slowly, like he was surveying a fine wine. Her skin was tightening in anticipation, readying itself for a completely different act, but when he bit her it made no difference.

There was a small amount of pain, just enough for her to be able to recognize it, but then the pleasure overrode her mind. The mixture, the inability to tell the two apart, had her breathless in his hold. Her mouth went dry as her body paradoxically sent moisture elsewhere, and the fiery itch evaporated in the all-consuming inferno burning through her every vein.

It was over too soon, and when she felt him licking her neck to clean it of the remnants of her own blood, her stiff body collapsed in on itself. He caught her easily as she slumped backwards into him, and he quickly carried her over to his bed. **"R-Ruby-san! Are you alright? I didn't take too much did I?"**

She smiled widely, almost drunkenly, as she listened to his panicked voice, and slipped a finger over his lips to quiet him. Casting her glazed pink eyes on him, she whispered, "I know why Mizore-san and Kurumu-san are willing to take turns now."

"**W-What?"**

She smiled again as she stretched like a contented cat before pushing herself upright. "Nothing, nothing at all. Feel free to come to me whenever you want an evening snack, I'll be _more_ than happy to oblige."

He just scratched the side of his head. **"O-Okay."**

"Or a midnight snack for that matter," she purred. His whole body flashed scarlet, and she laughed, though she wasn't really kidding. "Today was really nice. I hope we can do it again sometime."

That time he smiled back. **"Yeah."** He cursed himself inwardly as he realized that once again something had gone too far, and the lines he had strictly set up were blurring even more. Ever the gentleman, he couldn't just let her go. **"Do you want me to walk you back to the girl's dorms?"**

Pink dusted itself over her cheeks lightly before she reached over and grabbed her wand. "N-No, that's alright. I think I can get away with flying back tonight." She only wanted to walk as much as she had to, it would be rather…uncomfortable, otherwise. "And I can only imagine what Kurumu-san and the others would do to me if they found out where I had been!" He joined her in laughing about that. It was so true it was almost sad.

"**I'll see you tomorrow then."**

She nodded as he helped her off the bed, and she stunned him seconds later by giving him a quick peck on the cheek. "Hehe, couldn't resist. Goodnight, Tsukune-san."

He held his cheek, dumbstruck. **"…Goodnight."**

She skipped out the door happily, and he had almost recovered when her head popped back in. "Unless you want me to wash your back for you?" His skin turned so bright it matched his eyes, and she laughed. "Alrighty then, goodnight!"

His door closed, and he slumped to his bed. **"I am **_**so**_** screwed."**

He really wanted that bath now. After making all the necessary preparations, he sank into the water gratefully, more than happy at finally being able to wash himself again. For the time being at least, he could allow himself to forget his troubles.

But tomorrow would come soon enough.

…

The sound of hard soles clacking satisfyingly on the ground resounded through the schoolyard, and people turned and stared at the oncoming female. Mouths dropped and men stared, and cold ruby eyes kept anyone from approaching. Her elegant hair waved dispassionately in the mild breeze, and the sun gleamed from her alabaster complexion.

Five people in particular watched her come with a sense of foreboding building in their bodies, but one of them, the one her eyes were trained on, felt two different emotions rise up. They were polar opposites, yet two sides of the same coin, just a breath away from each other. Love and anger.

The Vampire Moka Akashiya stood in all her graceful beauty before her group of friends, her eyes focused solely on the man who shared her appearance. No skirt adorned her body, no standard issue uniform sullied her appearance. This time she looked like a warrior. Tight cotton leggings were secured over her toned legs, with brown leather cross-stitches keeping the black fabric intact running down the sides. Her plain white shirt was accentuated frightfully with a form-fitting black bodice, and her bust was made all the more prominent because of that. Hard leather boots were on her feet, and all in all she struck a commanding presence, even more so than usual with the whip Belmont in hand.

"_**Come Tsukune, I have one more thing to teach you."**_

It looked like what he had said yesterday wasn't just metaphorical.

It had been a prophecy.

"**I am **_**so**_** screwed."**

…

**Author's Notes:** Wow, I really enjoyed writing this chapter. I think the writers of R+V have downplayed what Ruby has gone through to focus more on her fetishist side for comedic relief, and I don't really like that. She's a mature individual that's dealt with more than much of the characters, and honestly I think her attraction to Tsukune is well-founded. Though Kurumu has the largest heart among them, her origin in the series was probably the least thought out. Really, she brought Inner Moka upon herself by trying to seduce Tsukune for her own selfish goals, and he simply saved her because he's a good person able to see the good in others. Of course, her character has developed radically over the course of the manga, and she's now a beloved character that I would never badmouth any more than this. Still, he saved Ruby's life in more ways than one, to the point where it actually looked like he _didn't_ save her at one point in time. Out of all of them, I think I might like how Ruby was brought into the story the best.

It looks like I'll be keeping in character, and in doing so just might end up with a harem. I'm more used to writing monogamous stories, so we'll see how this works out. Who knows? I know I have some redeeming of Moka's character to do in some of your eyes, and I'm sorry about that. I thought I had made it clear enough what she was going through, and I hope this shed some light on some things.

Next chapter: what you've all been waiting for (even me, LOL).

Anyways, thank you all so much for the reviews! I hope you continue to like my story!

(Whew! I really need to downgrade my chapters. This is only chapter four and I'm at seventy-eight pages!)


	5. One Bite, Too Much

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Rosario+Vampire, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story. Simple enough, ne? Just don't copy from this story and we're all good!

.

**One Bite, Too Much**

**.**

She had never thought this day would come.

How was it possible that it had come to this? How, how could one human have affected her so much that her heart ached when he wasn't around? How had it come to pass that even she, who had once only slumbered within her seal, waked with seeing him the only thought in her head? How did he love her so much he had reached her even in the depths of the ice around her heart? How had she let him succeed? How on earth had she fallen in love with him?

Why did she rely on his continued existence with such force that seeing him in pain brought rage unlike anything she had ever known to her fists? Why, why did she offer her heritage, her power, her very pride, her _blood_ to him? Why did the thought of him gone from her world shake her to the deepest depths of her supposedly stoic marrow? Why did he care about her so much? Why did _she_ care about _him_ so much? Why wouldn't he let her go even after everything she said to him, everything she _continued_ to say to him? Why couldn't _she_ let _him_ go even after everything she had said to him, everything she _continued_ to say to him? Why on earth had she fallen in love with him?

When had her nature, the bloodlust simmering ever-present in the source of her power, the liquid that she fed upon, taken a second seat to another emotion? When had she woken up and realized that if she couldn't see him there would be no point in getting out of bed? When had the Rosario been removed and she had noticed for the first time that the throbbing within her heart was actually her own, and not her other self's? When, when oh when had it first occurred to her that he was everything she had ever wanted in a mate? When on earth had she fallen in love with him?

Where had the feeling begun? Where had that traitorous, irrational, unbelievable, _glorious_ feeling come from? Where was it that her heart had begun beating in synchrony with another's, where the human had wormed his way so deep into her being that she thought of him even in the waking dreams of her seal? Where had the feared, hated, omniscient, omnipotent Vampire disappeared to, and this heartsick fool taken her place? Where had her confidence gone; the convinced pride that dared anyone to stand in the face of her iron-clad logic? Where on earth had she first realized she had fallen in love with him?

What had sparked it? What unassuming feature could she, the ultimate of unreachable goals, have been so drawn to that she couldn't pull away? What even gave her the idea she _could,_ if she wanted to? What was it that made this inexplicable, inescapable attraction to the human? What had made her take everything they had forged together over three years and crush it underfoot like a discarded cigarette? What had kept her from pleading for his mercy when he had in fact shown that he belonged at her side even more than before? What made her know the truth beyond all that? What on earth had made her know she had fallen in love with him?

Who could have thought she, the mighty Vampire Moka Akashiya, would ever contemplate giving herself to him even if he lost? Who would have ever guessed that she, the emotionless, jaded vampiress, would ever contemplate _losing_ just so she could give herself to him? Who on earth had done this to her? Who was this man that had stolen her heart from her even before she had realized she had given it to him first? Who, who on earth had made her fall in love with him?

It was a never-ending sea of questions, an eternity of second-guesses. There was always one truth, a singular reality that showed itself at the end of all of her queries.

She, the S-Class Super Vampire Moka Akashiya, was in love with Tsukune Aono.

Perhaps she had been drawn to his fire, the burning desire within him to protect those he cared about. Maybe she had been ensorcelled by his naïve kindness, the one that made him trust even the evil vampiress that he had first so unknowingly released. He had been a human, one so ephemeral they lived but a short eighty years on average, but so willing to be her shield he had jumped into the embers of his very mortality to save her from Kuyou's fire. So worried was he about wounds that would heal in less than a day for her that he would place himself in the path of an enraged Spider Woman. He loved her so much that he would confess to her face his feelings, and just as simply pull off her Rosario to know her true answer.

She was the quintessence of dichotomy, the woman who even in two was yet one, and even so, he loved both parts of her so much he differentiated not between either of them. In the race that had disgusted her she had found the one that loved her unconditionally, and yet that was all she gave him. Conditions. He who wanted to protect her so badly he would become a Ghoul to defend her, he who loved her with everything his frail human shell could offer her, had been deemed insignificant.

But that hadn't been it. Her 'sentimental' side loved him, she knew that, and deep down she knew that part of the reason her other self even _could_ love him so much was because _she_ did too. There was no possible way to pinpoint an origin; they had been together so long things started evolving without her consent. Every moment with him became another moment she treasured, and every moment away became a moment she would as soon as rather forget. But it was never that easy; it couldn't be. Of course, she was to blame for that too.

As much as she wanted it to work out, just as she had in her nightmares so often, she had still chosen the path of the Vampire to the path of the woman in love. As much as she wanted to cast off her birthright and be with him, it had still ended the same way. It still hadn't added up to her pride as a Vampire.

No, it had.

It had, and that was what scared her so badly. She had wanted to grab his lapels and pull him to her lips so much that day he had confessed it had been an even battle with her pride. That, _that_ had scared her. That she loved the former human in front of her enough to make _her_ uncertain frightened her to the very core of her being, and in her fear she had chosen the route she knew best, the route she knew she _should_ take. When it was over and she realized what she had done, she could only cry, cry and apologize. For the first time in her life Moka Akashiya had prayed, even though she had never believed in any kind of higher being than herself before that day.

And then, then everything had come tumbling down. The crumbling pedestal she had placed herself upon cracked from base to tip when she had walked into that hospital room and saw him, really _saw_ him. It was then that she had realized the true depth of his love for her. That he would risk becoming a Ghoul forevermore, that he would essentially kill himself, could he not prove himself worthy. That she had pushed the man who held her heart to place what remained of his humanity in jeopardy shook her to the foundations of her beliefs.

When she thought of Tsukune, she had to wonder if _she_ had ever wanted something with such desperation that she had been willing to basically kill herself for it. When she thought of that, she realized she _had_. She had wanted friends. She hadn't wanted to be alone anymore; the thought of immortality by herself scared her. It had been then that she had all but killed herself, and accepted the Rosario that sealed her away. The dual personality had been unexpected, but not totally unwelcome. Had she kept her usual persona in a sealed form she would have been killed even by a lesser monster for her usual mannerisms.

Then came along perfectly average, extraordinarily ordinary Tsukune Aono…and suddenly Moka Akashiya wasn't so alone anymore.

Though beyond trivial at this point, the first time she had tasted his blood she had become hopelessly addicted. When she had first bitten his feeble human neck the Vampire within her had stirred, and a bond had been formed, however unintentionally. She had never expected to see the light of day again, resigned herself to a life within a seal, but once more the weak human had shaken her heart. The only greater pain she had ever experienced than watching him get tossed around like a rag doll by their various opponents…had been doing it herself. The day he had become a Ghoul, her heart had bled. Before that however, he had surprised her by being able to remove her seal in the first place.

Removing her seal exposed him to both sides of her. He was under no illusions of who she was, and she knew he didn't love her just because of the pink-haired, emerald-eyed vision of beauty that had taken _her_ place. He had told her over and over that she was just as important to him as her cute and kind opposite, and in a way that had been what had started it all, what had made her hatred lessen for the instant his love needed to sneak into her heart. She had let her guard down for one second, and the seemingly 'weak' and 'insignificant' human had wormed his way into her very essence. From there the crack just kept getting wider with every moment she spent around him, every new thing she learned about him, until she at last grasped the authenticity of the naïve genuineness behind everything he was. As he had proven time and again, with that, he had achieved the impossible.

The human she had met on the very first day of high school had used the blood that had become his own and changed. Transfigured. Ascended. He had taken his willpower and the incredible strength of his naïve kindness and forged it into a vampire unlike anything she had ever met. He was a vampire who didn't want to cause pain with his bites, so instead he caused pleasure. He was a vampire who didn't want to fight, so instead he used his inhumanly sharp fangs to smile. He was a vampire who wouldn't lift a finger at an insult to most any aspect of his being, but insult his friends and Hell paled in comparison.

And he was a vampire who had taken away her last reason to deny him.

Her pride trembled in fear within her, for now every path available to her had become one that required the denial of its existence. There was no safe way to go about regaining what she wanted, _needed_, without its sacrifice, but once again she had chosen what she had thought was the safest route. A challenge. A challenge was safe, it was recognized universally; it was something that necessitated she bow should she be defeated, but it also allowed her to fight back. It granted her the ability to keep her pride and give it away with good reason. When it all boiled down, even then she would have to admit her wrongs once it was all done. It was the fighting chance she needed, the option that would placate her pride enough to tolerate her going through with possibly having to forfeit it.

She knew if she didn't, she would forever lose the only one that ever loved her, truly _loved her._ The stares of men and their hormonal attraction to her made her sick, the worthlessness of such transient feelings. What she desired was one who saw past everything, and she hated herself because she had found him, and still pushed him away. She couldn't, wouldn't, not any longer. There were others vying for his affection, and truthfully that didn't really bother her anymore. Vampires were immortal beings, it went without saying that they usually catered to more than one lover over the course of their lives. She herself had step-siblings. That wasn't what bothered her, it was that she might not be one of them that scared her. She knew what she had done to him, but she had to try.

That morning she had exhausted most of her supply of blood-packs, just to make sure she was at full strength for what was to come. She wasn't about to ask Tsukune if she could suck his blood after all, not with what she was going to ask him after. She had discarded the notion of wearing the school uniform, or anything with a skirt. She held the aura of a queen, but she wasn't about to knowingly walk into a battle in a dress. More often than not she had to fight in them because the battles came so quickly there was no other choice. She wasn't about to make the same mistake when she knew this would be, without a doubt, the hardest battle she had ever fought.

Listening to the hard soles of the leather boots she had chosen clack on the ground was extremely satisfying, but the stares that were once more sent her way were met with nothing but cold indifference and near unbridled rage. There was only one man she wanted looking at her like that, and she felt fear prickle up in her stomach when she saw the look in his eyes. Just as she was doing, he was staring right back at her, gazing intensely into her equally red eyes. No longer was the love she had seen so often in his warm eyes alone, no, now there was another emotion there as well, one she knew very well.

Anger.

The urge to wince was almost overpowering, but she held it at bay. She deserved every bit of his anger, in fact she would need to exploit it if she wanted him to fight her seriously. She needed to see the true extent of his new power, if he really could fight her on even ground. Then, finally, finally she would be able to discard the pride that had plagued her for so long.

Stopping in front of them, she could see the looks of confusion and fear on her other friends' faces. Ruby was the only one among them that still looked like she had any idea of what was going on, and after yesterday, Moka was inclined to believe she actually did. Kokoa was merely in shock, but she didn't have time to deal with her right now. Now she had to focus all of her attention on him, he deserved that, that and so much more.

"_**Come Tsukune, I have one more thing to teach you."**_

One more thing. Just one.

…

The air in the schoolyard crackled with power as the two vampires stared each other down, and the other students could only look on with amazed expressions. Many of the people who had seen Moka's inner form had already graduated, and the tales of her exploits were nothing but whispers and rumors to the Second and First years. No one could believe a kind woman like that was actually an S-Class Super Vampire.

Which begged the question: who then, was _this_ woman?

Upon hearing his next statement, the vampiress nearly smiled. With any luck, _that_ would come later.

After Tsukune finally recovered from his own sentence, he resumed his stare, however questioning it may be at this time. **"Where are we going?"**

The ice in his voice solidified her resolve. She could do this, he was in a perfect state for it. All she needed to do was prod it a bit. _**"Where we always train. As I said, I have one more thing to teach you. Be sure you're at full strength, I won't hold anything back today." **_He looked worried for a fraction of a second, but quickly smiled as he was known to do so often. Her heart twisted in her at the familiar action, but she made no outward indication of the act.

Turning to look at Mizore and Kurumu, the two simply smiled before flicking their hair to the side, wordlessly granting their consent. Moka couldn't help but grit her teeth when she saw the look of disappointment on the Snow Woman's face when Tsukune plunged his teeth into the Succubus' neck, but even she was startled when seconds later he pulled the ice maiden to him and repeated the process. The cold grip of unease was gaining ground now. She had never faced a vampire with the ability they had labeled 'ketsueki karite,' and the challenge was something she welcomed, but he had just fed from the strongest Succubus and Snow Woman of their generation. She could practically _see_ the power infuse him as his thirst was quenched momentarily, and she gripped Belmont tighter.

"**Just like old times, eh Moka-san?"**

The urge to soften her gaze towards him pounded at her conscience. How he could still sound so trusting even though she had meant every word with no amount of humor made her taste bile. Just this once, she would _make_ him fight her seriously. She would hurt him one more time, the last time, just to make sure. She could only hope Kurumu could forgive her.

Shrugging apathetically, she said, _**"Follow me."**_ When the others started following as well, she cast her hard scarlet eyes on them all, and they froze. _**"He is to come alone. You will know where to go soon enough."**_

They could only watch as the two silver-haired beings walked off, through the parting crowd towards where they knew the door to Paradise awaited. It was truly startling how much power they exuded, and it was no wonder why the students split as they did for them. Right then, it was all they could do to stay upright, they were sure. Some of the younger students were trembling openly even, unable to contain themselves under the oppressive Youki the two vampires were radiating.

Kurumu made to follow them anyways, but Ruby stopped her with a hand on her shoulder. "I don't get it, why do we have to wait here! Why did Inner Moka just show up like this, why now!"

Ruby just looked right past her to the retreating forms of the two powerful beings. "Because she has to. I think we may not have to worry about Tsukune-san being challenged anymore."

Mizore cocked an eyebrow. "Why?"

It was then they noticed that Ruby's hands were shaking, though they could tell she was trying impressively to stop them from doing so. She balled them into fists as she hardened her expression. "Because we're about to be shown what a true challenge is to a Vampire."

_Then_ they understood.

…

Tsukune stretched systematically as he had before all of their previous training sessions, and Moka had to admire the way his muscles flexed beneath his clothing as he did so. He had shrugged off his uniform's green blazer, and had rolled up the sleeves on his white button-up as he prepared. His body showed off his power far more than hers did, but that was what made hers all the more surprising. She could appreciate the tone of his body, while not so much that they bulged unpleasantly, just enough that they were defined without a shadow of a doubt.

Unwittingly, she licked her lips.

"**Not that I'm against skipping school to be with you, but what's this really about?"**

Her eyes hardened again as she stepped forward fearlessly, grabbing his hand and forcefully bringing it up to her chest. Before he knew what she had made him do, her Rosario was in his hand. Grabbing it in the hand that held Belmont, she threw both it and the cross off to the side carelessly as she stared him down.

Her face warped as her regular battle scowl appeared, and just like that she had jumped up and whirled around, sending a kick so powerful at his head he would have normally flown back hundreds of feet. To her immense surprise, the ground buckled beneath them when her leg connected with both of his arms instead of its target, and the ensuing force shattered the ground he was holding his place on. There were few beings in the entire world that could take one of her blows, least of all without moving at all. Glaring into his wide eyes, she hissed menacingly.

"_**Today we fight. Your only power was that my blood gave you, but you took it one step further. You wanted to go back to the human world so much, yet still you did this. You're a hypocrite, Tsukune. You're no vampire, and today I'll prove it."**_

She needed to get him angry; the words made her sick to her stomach, but she needed to get him angry. The disbelief and hurt that crossed his face made her flinch mentally, but she couldn't show it. The challenge had begun.

"**W-What are you saying, Moka-san! I don't understand!"**

She twirled her foot away from him to jump up into another combo using her other leg, and once again he surprised her by instinctively moving back, impressively avoiding each of the strikes that held enough force to shatter stone. Left and right he weaved, just like she had taught him, and instead of risking getting hit by any of her blows even with just a parry, he narrowly avoided them completely. She couldn't remember the last time she had faced someone that had been able to do that outside of a select few, Gin being one.

"_**You don't need to understand! You just need to fight, fight with everything you have! Prove me wrong!"**_

He tried to fight back, but it was even worse than his first attempts during his Second Year. They were wary punches that were afraid to take her seriously, the blows of a man that didn't want to hurt the one he loved. She made no such effort to avoid them like he had hers, she smashed them away from herself in disgust with such force that his body was jerked from side to side whenever she did.

They were relentless; two fully powered vampires that healed almost as quickly as they were injured. Even fighting as halfheartedly as he was he was putting up more of a fight than anything ever had before, and she was mildly impressed, though more thoroughly revolted. He still wasn't taking her seriously. He still wasn't fighting her with the strength he needed to make a vampire like her admit his power.

Her next series of punches caught him unaware, and saliva flew from his mouth as she rained blows onto his unprotected abdomen. With another spin she launched her foot into him again, and this time it stuck its intended target perfectly, violently slamming itself into his stomach with no force withheld. He was blasted away from her with the roar of a firing cannon, and his body left shattered trees in its wake as the sound of wet coughing permeated the air. Her demonic aura flared around her as she took off after him, but stopped cold when she saw him gasping up blood onto the ground.

_**Tsukune!**_

Cold fear settled inside her when she saw the sharp branch impaled completely through his right side, and the chill quickly crept through her entire body when he glared up at her, his reptilian pupils whisper-thin.

_She's…she's really serious! She's really…trying to…kill me! _Grasping painfully at the object embedded through him, he screamed as he pulled the branch from his body, once more relegated to his hands and knees as he coughed up blood. A haze of bloodlust was settling over him, every shard of anger he had ever held towards Moka rising up in betrayed fury. _Heal…heal!_

A screech from above caught their attention, and he looked up to see a Wyvern circling above, likely investigating the commotion. His body reverted to autopilot, his instincts crying out just one word: _survive._

Moka didn't like where this turn of events was heading, but when she saw his Youki flare she knew something was going to happen. Right away he leaped into one of the nearby trees, rocketing himself towards the black dragon like a frenzied predator. The blow he delivered to the scaled lizard could be _felt_ even from where she was, and even as the two fell from the sky, she saw him sink his fangs into the unprotected underside of its soft throat. The monster shook in its assailant's hold, unable to break free, and soon plummeted into the ground with a huge explosion of dirt and sediment.

She watched in terror as he continued his feast, and the gaping wound in his back slowly healed until nothing but perfect ivory flesh remained. Vampires healed extremely quickly, but she had _never_ seen a wound like that heal so perfectly so fast. It was a good thing the beast was so much larger than he was, because the amount of blood he could drink was nowhere near enough to kill it. The world would sorely miss even one Wyvern. He turned to look at her sharply, his bloody lips curled up over his sharp fangs in nothing short of animalistic rage as he let out a scream of triumph so bestial she could hardly believe it had come from him.

With a disgusted grunt he tore his bloodied and ruined shirt from his body, using what remained of the white garment to wipe his face before he used it to bandage the dragon's neck. When his eyes closed in on her again there was nothing but fury in them, and she took a step back against her will. His powerful muscles rippled in feral indignation, and had that look not been directed at her she would have appreciated the view of his half-naked self.

He felt betrayed in a way he never had before. They had never fought like this, not in this sense. Now all the blood he had within him was screaming one thing, coiling his rage into one compressed mass of inhuman resentment that scorched through his entire body.

Make. Her. Pay.

The typhoon of red energy caught her off guard, a vortex of swirling power that radiated solely from her opponent as otherworldly bats flew wildly in the untamed display of pure demonic energy. Her hair flailed madly in the wind the energy was creating, and for once she felt sweat trickle down her neck. It had been so long since she had faced an opponent like this, so long since she had actually felt _fear_.

Blazing crimson eyes were one of the few things that could be seen from within the storm of churning strength, and the energy cast his scars into eerie luminescence that stood out brightly on the shadowy backdrop of his body. The lethal fangs exposed threateningly from under his lips suddenly looked that much deadlier, and in that moment he didn't look like a vampire. In that moment it didn't feel like she was standing before Tsukune, or even a Sage of Blood. In that moment it felt like she was standing in front of a Dark Lord.

"**Do you know how long I've known you, Moka-san?"** The air trembled with every word he spoke, and his bright red eyes raged angrily. She returned to her fighting stance and just like that the tempest of energy disappeared…then with no warning she was doubled over his knee, the one that had just been pounded into her stomach with enough force to send spittle flying from her mouth. She hobbled away from him, gasping desperately, but no sooner had she done that had he disappeared again. This time appearing behind her, she just barely had time to face him before his fist connected with her face and sent her sprawling.

Forcing her Youki to the surface, she rebounded quickly, vanishing just as he had done and sending a hard kick straight at his seemingly unprotected head from behind. The reverberation of impact was like an explosion, but to her surprise she saw his arms once more holding her off in a cross-guard made for accepting harsh blows like kicks.

"**Do you know how many times I've seen you fight?"** Her eyes widened when his right hand closed in over her ankle and gripped it so hard she winced. **"Lesson one: you always aim for the head if you can."**

Her sense of equilibrium was skewed hopelessly when he turned and pulled, the furious flame of his Youki still flashing frighteningly around him. With her still caught in his grip as she was, she found herself flung over him with the strength only a vampire could muster. She impacted the ground so hard blood shot from her mouth, but he was nowhere near done yet. He smashed her around like she was a doll in his grip, flinging her into the terrain with the force only a vampire's spurned love could give it. She had wrapped into herself as tightly as she could, hoping to lessen the injury by making sure none of her body parts were flung away from her body when she hit the ground. That certainly didn't lessen the pain. He spun one last time—still carrying her body in one hand like it was nothing—before launching her into the other side of the forest like a discus, sending her flying through even more trees than she had him.

Though her blood was making short work of the blunt-force injuries she had incurred, she wasn't totally recovered when he appeared before her again. He was fast, faster than she had ever taught him. She forced her Youki higher, relishing in the fierce combat that had even managed to injure _her_. Twisting on her arms she sent her leg flying at him from an angle impossible for any man, but somehow he had been ready for that as well, and caught it in both his hands as the ground was torn asunder behind him. The two superpowers struggled against each other, both of their muscles shaking in effort.

"**Lesson two: when injured, you'll put nearly all of your strength into one blow to try and incapacitate your opponent as quickly as possible."**

Again, her eyes widened. He really did know how she fought, he hadn't been bluffing. Worse of all, he could combat it.

"_**Lesson three: never get cocky when a fight hasn't finished yet!"**_ Flinging her other leg to his other side, she firmly gripped him between her powerful legs and twisted, hammering his head into the ground as hard as she could from the position she was in. Jumping back before he had a chance to retaliate, she took the moment to allow herself more time to heal and re-enter her stance.

Just as she knew he would do, when the dust settled he had already pulled himself back to his feet, and was in fact cracking his neck in amusement. She saw the splotchy bruises on his skin already healing, and she barred her fangs. It had been a long time since she had fought someone on the same level as herself; even Kahlua used blades when fighting seriously. To a vampire, blades were very hazardous because cuts made them lose blood. With both herself and Tsukune being blunt-force fighters, the fight had already been drawn out far longer than anything else she had faced before. They stared each other down fiercely, his fangs just as eager as hers.

All of a sudden ice shot up from the ground and skewered her from every angle, pushing through muscle and bone like it was nothing. There had been no way to prepare, no warning, no time to respond, and she couldn't hold back the wail of agony that tore from her throat as the solidified water impaled her in place. The pain of her body-heat melting the ice into water in her wounds made her gasp in torment, and she bit her lip hard enough to draw blood to keep from crying out any more.

In a flash, everything vanished. She collapsed to the ground like a broken puppet, but no pain met her landing. She looked around herself frantically in shock, running her hands all over her body, and yet felt no wounds. The answer that bolted through her had her every muscle tensing, and she looked up hesitantly to see Tsukune still in the same place he had been previously, his pale lips pulled up into a smile of sick accomplishment.

_**An…an illusion,**_ she realized in disbelief._** An illusion strong enough to make**_** me**_** feel **_**pain!**_** It…it felt so real I could even feel the ice melting in me!**_ She quickly closed her eyes as she jumped to her feet lest she get caught again, instinctively sending out her inborn Youki detector to keep him in her senses.

"**I thought you wanted me to fight you seriously. You won't last long with your eyes closed."**

They did indeed open wide at those words but he was already in front of her, his middle finger flexed and held in place by his thumb. Seeing it so close to her forehead, her eyes narrowed. _**"You wouldn't dare."**_

The grin he gave that time was nothing if not menacing. **"Payback sucks, doesn't it?"**

The flick of his finger caught her dead in the middle of her forehead, and the sound that boomed forth was like that of their earlier blows. The resulting thrust sent her backwards like a bullet, and her body cracked sickeningly against one of the opposing trees. Slumping down to her feet, she willed her eyes to focus in on him. She could feel herself weakening, feel the thirst taking hold again in the desire to regain her strength. Above all it seemed her muscles were still not fully convinced they hadn't been run through like meat on a pike, and that was making it even harder to move than it would have been had she just been thirsty.

The fight took on new ferocity, both vampires hungry for blood in more than one sense.

It was instinct versus instinct, the two immortals shooting their limbs at each other so quickly it looked like a dance; a terrible, deadly dance. Moka was fluid motion, her dodges done with impossible flexibility yet still capable of dealing blows just as powerful as his even from the seemingly awkward positions. Tsukune was unstoppable force, no longer afraid to push her strikes away from him with ones of his own before responding in kind. Standing in place, neither gaining nor giving ground, the hard earth under them creaked and broke with every new assault that was blocked.

No monster in the protected realm dared interfere with the fight of the two S-Class Youkai, no matter how rare or how powerful they were. The very atmosphere was quaking in response to the intense power both were glowing with, and the bloodlust radiating just as assuredly kept a wide berth between themselves and them. The Wyvern had been unlucky, and even though most of them were mindless beasts, they still had no desire to meet the same fate.

The half-naked man and the woman whose clothes were ripped and scuffed by then continued, thoughtless of the possible interruptions. There was only one thing they could think about: their fight. When Tsukune jumped away from her she gladly took the breaths she could gather, but then he had shot his arms forward and _real_ ice rocketed towards her. She didn't even know if he was using them consciously; he was just fighting as hard as he could and his powers were responding accordingly.

She danced between the enormous arcs of crystalline water sent her way and slowly made her way back to him, catching him unaware in a kick that shattered through his latest column of ice and launched him into the air. She jumped up after him, not about to let the chance pass her by, but she hadn't expected to hear him start laughing.

"**Lesson four: you can't fly. The air isn't your domain."**

As he pointed an arm at her oncoming form, she quickly realized the error in judgment. There was no way for her to dodge in the air, and she just barely managed to minimize the damage from the sizeable chunk of ice that was soon fired at her by twisting at the right time. It did push her back even if it hadn't hurt her all that much, and she was in no position to land correctly by the time she hit the ground. Tsukune hadn't really fared any better as he rolled gracelessly to a stop, but unlike her he had still managed to get a hit in, and he wasn't running on empty.

The two silver-haired beings pushed themselves to their feet tiredly, almost completely spent. Tsukune had exhausted Mizore and Kurumu's powers after their uses, because much of it and the Wyvern's blood had gone to healing the grievous wound at the beginning of the fight. Moka on the other hand was running on nothing but determination, too far gone to consider _letting_ him win by this time.

They panted heavily as they stared each other down once more, willing their tired bodies upright. Moka faltered and fell back to one knee, gasping helplessly, staring wide-eyed at Tsukune. _**I…I can't get up.**_

The man in question stumbled towards her with purpose, his steps gaining strength the longer they had to heal, before at last he stood before her victoriously. She had no strength left to resist when he grabbed the empty chain of her choker and forced her up to his level, so close their lips were but a breath apart. His hard red eyes softened as he stared into her stunned counterparts, and for the first time in a long while he gave her a loving smile.

"**Is that good enough, Moka-san?"**

That was all it took.

She clasped her arms behind his neck and pushed their faces together with more force than she knew she had left in her, not the least bit bothered by the heavy tears falling from her closed eyes. They were tears for a pride held too long, for a love too long denied. They were tears for a man who didn't deserve what she had done to him, and for a wrong that had finally been made right. The two vampires kissed with years of bottled up passion, all their fury and resentment spent. As weak as she was she couldn't do anything when he took over her mouth, and she eagerly allowed his tongue entry as she tilted her head to grant him better access. Their tongues traced each other's fangs hungrily, charting the unknown with heated abandon.

His hand trailed softly to the small of her back and moved her against him, and they both groaned in appreciation of the further contact while the hand on her choker glided to the space between her shoulder-blades. Though their bodies were exhausted and their healing capabilities working overtime on the lack of blood, they could still revel in the firm, warm softness of the other pressing against them.

She gasped and chuckled in her sensuous voice when they stumbled back into a tree trunk, and silently they rested their foreheads together. Their deep breaths splashed against their skin, and the two pairs of scarlet eyes simply gazed into each other, transfixed.

"**Whoa…"**

There was no helping it, she smiled. That certainly summed it up nicely. She had never known the innocent Tsukune could even _conceive_ of kissing like that. When she finally had enough strength to speak again, she looked away. _**"I won't mince words, Tsukune; I've been nothing but a contradictory bitch to you. I do love you, I loved you even before you became a vampire…but…but I couldn't…I was…I was so…"**_

He smiled softly as he took in something no one ever had: the Vampire Moka Akashiya, unable to speak properly. He gently grabbed her downcast head and coerced it back up to him, and when it was, he recaptured her lips. This one was much softer, chaste, almost hesitant, and when he pulled away tears were once again gathering in her beautiful red eyes.

"**You were scared,"** he whispered tenderly as he caressed his hand down the side of her dirty face. It wasn't a question.

She nodded into his hand in shame, affectionately nuzzling the warmth closer as her tears streaked the dirt down her cheeks. _**"I was terrified. I'm a vampire, a proud, powerful, Super Vampire, but in that moment I felt like a little girl. You…I wanted you so badly, but I knew I **_**shouldn't**_**. I…I didn't know what to do. I suppose you could say my blood won by default, and I regretted it every second afterwards."**_ She rubbed her wet eyes for emphasis. _**"Look at me; look what you've done to me, Tsukune. Before you confessed I had never cried, now I can't stop…"**_

A playful smile tugged at his lips as he leaned forward and kissed the tearstains, regardless of her grubby skin. **"Both of us have never been able to make anything easy. Even proud, powerful, Super Vampires can make mistakes."**

She chuckled reluctantly and nodded as she moved her head to rest on his shoulder. For once she wasn't even searching for blood, now she just wanted to be close to him. As thirsty as she was, as tired as she was, she wasn't about to ruin _this_ moment. When he started stroking her long silver hair her whole body warmed, and for once, everything was right in her world.

"_**I did make a mistake, Tsukune. I made many, many mistakes. The biggest mistake of all was thinking you weren't my equal. You are far more than my equal, you always have been. Now it's just more literal."**_ The words came freely, her pride gone and forgotten. The only thing that existed in that moment was them.

He held her closer, burning the feeling of her body in his arms into his memory. This had always been his dream, and finally it was coming true. **"And now, I can finally protect you, all of you. You have no idea how long I've wanted to hold you like this."**

"_**Never be afraid to again."**_

Emboldened, he kissed her neck lovingly, and just like with her, it wasn't for blood. It was a comforting gesture, and another one of the things he had always wanted to do. Just being able to kiss her sent him on a high that was beyond words, and he couldn't wait to do it more.

Moka chuckled again as her skin thrummed where his lips had touched, eager for more of his lips…and for his fangs. _**"I'm too weak for that right now. Give me some time and I'll gladly offer you my neck…"**_ She leaned up to his ear, and relished in the shiver she felt go through him when her breath splayed upon it. _**"…and so much more."**_

He nearly choked on nothing but air. His blush didn't need to be _seen_ by her, she could feel the intense heat overtaking his flesh perfectly from where she was. He squirmed uneasily as his pants suddenly felt two sizes smaller than they should have been, and he heard the vampiress in his arms take in a sharp breath.

_**Well now, he **_**can**_** react like a regular male,**_ she thought approvingly, her own heat growing by the second. He made the move to get away from her, but she clasped her arms around his waist forcefully, smashing herself back into him and forcing his pelvis back against her. The throaty purr that issued from between her full lips when that happened only made it worse, and she nipped at his neck seductively.

"_**I wouldn't move if I were you. The Exorcist placed Shikigami all around Paradise to watch our battle. Who knows if they're still watching."**_

Tsukune went rigid in a whole different way that time. **"Y-You mean…"**

"_**No one will ever challenge you again, not after they've seen what you're **_**truly**_** capable of."**_

Regret clouded his features, and he hugged her again, his arousal all but forgotten. **"I'm sorry about that, Moka-san. Some part of me knew what you wanted, but I was just so…**_**angry**_**. I…I did so many things that…"**

She smiled softly. _**"You did exactly what you should have. I'll be honest, I feel like I've been run over by a steamroller…repeatedly…but I've never felt better in my life. My heart is finally clear."**_

A quiet whine escaped him. **"You're **_**really**_** not making this any easier."**

At that her smile turned rueful, and though she was having trouble staying upright as it was, she still managed to find the strength to roll her hips into his. His face burned and he shuddered with a groan that set her core on fire. How she wished she had more strength, because as she was she could do nothing more, though truthfully she was contemplating ripping off her pants and allowing him to take her right against the tree. By that point she wanted him so badly it just wasn't fair that she couldn't.

Her eyes widened considerably when Tsukune yanked her arms away from him and pinned them above her head, to the trunk of the tree. Keeping the rest of her in place by stepping powerfully against her legs and waist, she gulped unconsciously when she saw his absolutely blazing crimson eyes.

"**Even **_**I**_** have my limits."** He dragged his fangs over her exposed neck tauntingly, not enough to break skin, just enough to drive her crazy. She nearly whimpered as her hands flexed spasmodically, but she wasn't strong enough to push his hands away and pull him closer. That gave his brain time to catch up, and he panted against the hollow of her collarbone as he struggled to regain control of himself. By then he had realized his instincts were taking over again, and though the desire was overwhelming, it wasn't something he wanted them to lose in the middle of a forest in an alternate realm. **"We should go, Moka-san."**

The groan of disappointment was almost too much to hold back, but she did. If there was anything she understood, it was Tsukune. It wasn't the time for that. Yet.

"_**Moka,"**_ she replied warmly.

He gave her a confused look as he let go of her arms and stepped away from her. **"Pardon?"**

"_**Moka. No more –san, no more honorifics. I'm Moka to you now."**_

If it was possible, he blushed more from that statement than all of her previous teasing. **"M-Moka…."** He said hesitantly, trying the feel of it on his tongue. He found he liked it quite a bit, and before she could respond he had pulled her to him again, dominating her mouth in a commanding kiss that eliminated any thought of thirst from her mind. When he pulled away it was _her_ that was left dazed, and he just smiled lovingly again. **"Moka,"** he repeated, stronger this time.

She smiled lazily. She had never known he could make her tingle just by saying her name, and without the constant suffix he added to her moniker it was made even more prominent. Leaning up to his ear once more, she whispered, _**"You better remember that. I'll have you saying it a lot."**_ She gasped when he unexpectedly nipped playfully at _her_ earlobe, the one so close to _his_ mouth.

"**Who says you won't be screaming mine?"**

She was sure even her other self was now staring open-mouthed at her fellow vampire. For a small while she was simply thunderstruck, but soon a grin of absolutely evil proportions had taken its place on her full lips. Her Tsukune was gaining a backbone. _**"Consider the challenge taken."**_

He chuckled hotly. **"Hold that thought. We have to get out of here first, and if what you said is true, there'll be some explaining to do. But, it did give me an idea to one of our problems."**

Carefully lowering her down to sit against the tree, he noticed the odd way she was looking at him. _**"What do you mean?"**_

"**Sit tight, I'm going on a little…spy hunt. We should get some blood in you, and I happen to know your flavor of choice. I'm just going to restock."**

One of her pale eyebrows rose in confusion, but no sooner had that happened had he already taken off, searching for who-knows-what. Unbeknownst to her, he soon found one of what he was looking for in one of the nearby trees. Typical, he supposed, since they _were_ supposed to be keeping an eye on them for the duration of that fight. It was a good thing they couldn't get sound too, otherwise he'd die of embarrassment. Looking down on the skittish creature as it in turn looked up at him with its wide eye, he smiled an almost menacingly amused grin.

"**I'm sorry, we are currently experiencing some technical difficulties. Please stand by."**

The last thing the Shikigami saw before it faded to unconsciousness was Tsukune's fangs closing in on it.

…

The entire school sat in shock in the gymnasium, absolute silence reigning supreme as one by one the angles of viewpoint were discovered and devoured. The fight they had just witnessed wasn't that of two young adults; what had started out as an all-out dominance by the long-haired female had quickly turned into a massacre of vampiric proportions.

They hadn't even been there, all they could do was see it, but somehow they could _feel_ the power imposed in every image. There were two _real_ monsters among them, _demons_ to be more precise. That Tsukune could do that was frightening enough, that the woman could _survive_ it almost more so.

Five people however, though they were shaking the same way, had much different reasons behind it.

"O…Onee-sama…_lost_…" Kokoa gaped in utter disbelief.

Those two words summarized a mass of feelings, from all of them. Watching Tsukune speared through by a tree branch had had many of them crying out in fear, but what happened afterwards had quickly turned them mute in astonishment. They had never seen him fight with such ferocity, such power, and they had _never_ seen Moka's vampire self get defeated, let alone so thoroughly they actually felt _sorry_ for her.

And of course, then they quickly began feeling like voyeurs. To see the two so heatedly tangled in each other's arms brought a flame of jealousy to their hearts, but more than that even it brought a flame of a whole different sort to their bodies, one very, _very_ contradictory to jealousy. The urge to fidget was irresistible, but they managed somehow. It wasn't long after all the other students emptied out of the auditorium on shaky legs, muttering amongst themselves. They hadn't even noticed the assembly had ended.

Imagine the group's surprise when the Shikigami up front sprang to life again, and this time the image was moving down a hallway. It _would _have been confusing, had the image not moved, and looked down on a beautiful woman currently taking up residence in the origin's arms. It was then they realized Tsukune had unknowingly activated the Shikigami's power within him, but when they saw the silver-haired Moka smile softly before re-resting her head against his shoulder, their mouths dropped.

"Did I just see what I think I just saw?" Kurumu asked, askance.

Kokoa's unconscious form pretty much confirmed it.

One of the side doors opened, and in walked the two in question. Sure enough, Moka was cradled in his arms, though looking at her they could see why. Tsukune was still shirtless, but his pants were torn and dirty. Moka's clothes on the other hand appeared as though they were barely staying together, and what was exposed of her skin looked just as dirty. It looked like they had been through a war, which was a rather apt description when they thought about it.

"Tsukune!" Four voices cried in unison.

He smiled as they approached, and though Moka was feeling slightly self-conscious of her position, she had to admit it was a good way to rub things in. She was sure she wouldn't be alone for long, after all. Nonetheless, she didn't like looking weak in front of anyone but him, and she moved until he was forced to let her stand on her own two feet again.

"Are you okay?" Yukari asked worriedly, and he simply grinned.

"**As soon as the adrenaline wears off I think I'll be in some trouble. I've healed a lot, but damn I'm really starting to hurt. I was going to take us straight to the hospital, but I felt you guys here so I thought we could use the company. I don't know if I'll pass out on my feet on the way there,"** he joked lightly.

"You were amazing Tsukune-san! I've never seen anything like it!" Ruby proclaimed excitedly, and he rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment.

"**When I think back on it now, I have a hard time believing I was able to do all that to Moka-sa—"** He was stopped rather abruptly by said vampire's sudden glare, and he coughed nervously. **"I-I mean…Moka. It feels kind of surreal."**

The disappearance of the honorific was lost on none of them, and the open-mouthed stares resumed. The vampire merely smiled unassumingly as she cradled Belmont, her Rosario back in place. Needless to say she was quickly knocked off-kilter when Mizore lackadaisically removed the lollipop from her mouth, before just as calmly reaching forward and pulling Tsukune down to her lips. The red-eyed male groaned when her cold tongue pushed into the confines of his mouth, and just like he had thought, she was absolutely amazing with her tongue. Where she learned that he had no idea.

Frosty breath floated from his mouth when she pulled away and Tsukune gasped, letting free the chilly air from his lungs. **"Oh…wow…"** he croaked dizzily, though he didn't quite understand what had just happened.

"It's Mizore from now on, got that?"

Even Inner Moka had to applaud her sudden bout of confidence. _**So, they did see what happened after.**_

Not about to be outdone, in fact rather miffed she was left out in the first place, Kurumu quickly jumped into his arms and claimed his mouth heatedly. If he had been close to recovering before, that was certainly discarded in a hurry. If he thought Mizore's tongue was talented, Kurumu did things to his mouth that short-circuited what was left cognizant in his brain. When _she_ pulled away, he was far less steady on his feet than he had been before.

"**Gah…"**

"You're calling me Kurumu then too!"

He could only nod numbly. When he finally felt somewhat sober again he gulped, not sure of what to make of what had just happened in the last five minutes. That would be all the time he was going to be given however, because Ruby's rapidly flushing form wasn't about to be denied any longer. He was knocked clear off his feet when she jumped into his arms, and before he knew it _she_ had captured his lips. Beyond help by this point, he could only kiss back. She jumped off him just as quickly as she had onto him, and smiled happily as she blushed with a sheepish expression that totally belied what she had just done so brazenly.

"I-If Tsukune-san would call me Ruby…"

Aforementioned man could barely form any words by then, but he still managed to get his tired body to its feet again. When Yukari jumped into the air his eyes went to twice their natural size, but thankfully Kurumu quickly grabbed the airborne witch and held her back.

"Waaaah! I want to be called by my name too ~desuuu! Why can't I get a kiss ~desu!"

Kurumu smiled smugly as she put a hand a good foot over the witch's head, right at the top of her own forehead.

"You must be at least this tall to ride."

A choked sound came from the back of his throat, and the inevitable happened soon after.

Tsukune fainted immediately.

…

**Author's Notes:** Yikes, another nineteen page chapter. I would have broken it up if I could, but I had to make the fight scene nice and long otherwise there would have been no point to it. I really enjoyed this chapter, so I hope you all do too. I can't believe I'm already three pages away from one hundred pages at chapter FIVE of all things. Usually I pace myself a bit better, and I _still_ have more to write! This is turning into quite the story. In case you were wondering, no, Tsukune didn't kill the Shikigami, he just took enough blood that they fainted.

Anywho, thanks everyone for all your encouragement! Please continue to review, it really keeps up my morale! Knowing you all appreciate my work makes everything worth it.

I hope you enjoyed the chapter!


	6. To Love A Vampire

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Rosario+Vampire, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story. Simple enough, ne? Just don't copy from this story and we're all good!

**Just a friendly warning, this chapter contains lemon. Yes, this story is rated M for a reason.**

...

**To Love A Vampire**

**...**

For the second time in less than a week Tsukune Aono woke up in a hospital room.

_I really need to get a better hobby,_ was of course, the first thing that came to mind. As he willed his disoriented vision to clarity, much to its displeasure, he noticed that he wasn't as alone as he first thought. A mass of purple seemed to be resting against his one side, and as his sight cleared further he realized it was hair. _Who do I know with purple hair?_

This was all answered when the mass mumbled sleepily and adjusted its position, throwing a pale arm over his chest and setting _very_ soft flesh against his side. Tsukune couldn't resist the groan that rumbled through him at the feeling, and soon bright blue eyes were looking up at him. The confused blink those beautiful eyes gave as they looked into his wine-colored orbs was too cute, and he found himself smiling, even though he knew now this had to be a dream.

"**It's Mizore-chan this time?"** he whispered pitifully.** "My dreams really need to stop getting so damn realistic…"**

The confusion on her face quickly warped into a predatory grin over her lollipop, and in any other situation he would have gulped. He knew by now though that any time he woke up with a girl in his bed—_any_ bed—it was pretty much guaranteed to be a dream. A nice dream, but a dream nonetheless. The woman by his side had since moved herself onto all fours, and before his eyes she stalked up his body until she was straddling his waist, her face mere inches away from his.

"Tell me Tsukune, if this was a dream, what would I do?" she whispered back. Her sleepy, sensual tone burned through his veins like fire, and even in his dreams he had to admit she smelled absolutely heavenly. Her collarbone was exposed tauntingly under the wide neck of her shirt, and the pale flesh called to him relentlessly, just begging him to reach under the spandex tank top she always wore under it. He gulped heavily.

"**I don't know. I usually don't have much say in the matter."**

His raspy confession just made her grin wider, and she removed the lollipop from her mouth before pressing their lips together softly. The groan that time was more pronounced, and he fell into the kiss with abandon. He had the feeling this had happened before, but for the life of him he couldn't figure out when, or how. It was when he tried to move his arms that some sense of reality came back to the young vampire, because his muscles ached. For some reason even that didn't clue him in, but he couldn't care less as the Snow Woman all but melted in his hold, pressing herself against him in a way that made his hormone-drenched instincts flare hungrily.

She was wonderfully cold naturally, though there was underlying warmth that only she could give it, one that sent chills through him. As her tongue pushed into his willing mouth he gladly took the invitation, tracing her palate eagerly. The lollipop constantly in her mouth obviously bolstered her imagination in the area, because she was doing things to his tongue he had never thought possible. Not about to let even his dream go without, he tried mimicking her movements as best he could, and she shuddered against him with a low whine that went straight to his groin.

"**M-Mizore-chan…"**

Her cold, warm lips moved against him, softly running along his jaw and down to his neck. His body was burning, and it was taking everything he had not to flip their positions, dream or not. Pain—and an almost disturbing amount of pleasure—shot through him at the unusual feeling of her blunt teeth biting his skin, and he was all but jolted back to awareness.

The most disturbing aspect however was not that he was back to full wakefulness, but rather that _nothing had changed_.

Licking the love-bite affectionately, the Snow Woman returned back to his lips. Only when he was back in an oxygen-deprived stupor did she speak. "That's the second time. I told you it was Mizore to you now, didn't I?"

An unhealthy amount of blood rushed to his face. Everything came back to him; he and Moka's climactic fight, the events that ensued afterwards, and what his friends had done in response. At least that explained why his muscles were so sore. His mouth moved but no sound came forth, and Mizore put a finger over his lips calmly, gesturing her head to the side. The blood that had rushed up quickly drained away in fear when he saw the rest of his friends, sleeping just off to his right.

Ruby, Kokoa, and Kurumu were sleeping in the chairs on the side wall, while Yukari was cuddled up pretty intimately with the occupant of the other bed of the room. His gaze warmed when he saw the other vampire sleeping soundly, her pink hair still visible even in the darkness of the room. There was a blood pack hanging from the bar beside her bed, and now that he had noticed that, he saw he himself had one. A questioning glance was all he needed to direct to the ice maiden for her to understand.

"You've both been out for almost two days now. The docs said they needed to keep you fed; you were both suffering from pretty heavy anemia. According to them, you must have done quite a number on each other for your healing abilities to be running that hard. The Shikigami must not have given you enough blood, especially if Moka took from you right after. You weren't kidding, you really were running just on adrenaline."

He sighed and relaxed back into the bed, grateful when Mizore removed herself from on top of him, though not when she snuggled up into his side where she had been before instead. He had to admit it felt really, _really_ nice, but it still felt wrong, mainly with all their friends barely two steps away.

"**A-And what were you doing in my bed?"**

She pouted through the candy back in her mouth, and suddenly his hands itched to hold her again. "Do I need a reason? The others were already asleep, so it's their fault they didn't think of it. What, do you want me to leave?"

Arguments for and against the answer to that question weighted heavily in his mind, and eventually he just sighed. **"Want to? No. Should? Yes."**

Her beatific smile was all it took for him to know her response. "Good. I'm quite comfortable here, thank you." She nuzzled into him further for emphasis, pressing body parts he would rather ignore against him tenderly. He was trying very hard to forget about his arousal, and she seemed adamant in doing exactly what Inner Moka was so talented in. That is, making him think of nothing but. "You're so warm, but cold too. It's really weird, usually I can't stand being warm, but you don't even flinch when you feel my cold."

Unable to stop himself, he caressed the side of her face with his free hand, wary of the intravenous feeding him the blood-pack, naturally. Her skin really was cool to the touch, but it had never really bothered him as a human, and as a vampire it bothered him even less. The thought came to mind that it was because he drank her blood so often, and he couldn't rule out the possibility. She shivered again at the contact, and shut her eyes contently as she rested her head against his shoulder.

"This is…really nice."

His throat closed up. **"…Yeah, it is, isn't it?"**

Sensing a quick change was about to come up, the Snow Woman put a finger over his lips once more. "Shh, don't think about that right now, just go back to sleep," she muttered sleepily, and it was only then he noticed that it was still _very_ dark outside.

"**I'm sorry for waking you up."**

A lazy smile stretched over her tired face. "Don't be. Knowing I'm in your dreams is…always nice…"

His pale skin brightened again, but a quick evaluation of the woman resting against him told him she had fallen back asleep. He smiled softly, allowing himself to run his hand over her cheek again as he brushed off some of the hair that had been knocked askew. Her doll-like appearance was even more pronounced when she slept, and she looked positively stunning.

Things kept getting infinitely more complicated with every passing day, and yet…looking at her, he just couldn't bring himself to care. Somehow, it would all work out.

He hoped.

…

There were a few things that Moka Akashiya had come to accept as normal in her life, and love life—loose as the term may be, for now. One: Kurumu would, without fail, hug Tsukune into her cleavage at least once every day. Two: Tsukune was always—_always_—under the watchful eye of a Snow Woman at almost any given time. Three: if not for the two listed prior, she and Tsukune would have likely gotten a lot farther than they have already.

Still, when she woke up, she really couldn't have expected what she saw, even though she probably should have. Her whole body ached, but that was only natural. Even a fellow vampire would never come out unscathed from a battle with one of their own, unless the gap in power was too large to ignore. She didn't doubt that if Tsukune hadn't gotten that huge wound at the beginning, he would have mopped the floor with her. Then again, if he hadn't gotten that huge wound, he probably wouldn't have taken her seriously either. She knew that next time he needed to fight he wouldn't be near as kind. Battles among Youkai of their caliber were usually life or death, so he couldn't afford the luxury anymore. She hoped he understood that.

That was all normal, and even the pint-sized witch nestled into her side didn't bother her. At least she wasn't groping her in her sleep. But when she looked over to where the other patient in the room was resting, she couldn't help but be shocked. Tsukune was there, which was a bit comforting to her ego seeing that he had been hospitalized as well as her, but he wasn't _alone_ in bed.

She couldn't really bring herself to be upset, but that didn't stop her from being shocked. One of their friends, the watchful stalker and strongest Snow Woman of her generation, was sleeping soundly beside him, her head on his shoulder. It was almost disturbing how well they fit together, and she was horrified when she thought they looked cute before she could stop herself. They really did look nice together, silver hair blending in seamlessly with light violet as their equally pale skin complimented the other so magnificently. That of course made her wonder what _she_ would look like in that position, and she blushed healthily.

_**Does that bother you?**_

For once, Moka wasn't startled by her inner self's interruption. _I thought it would, but it really doesn't. Mizore-chan is on a deadline she has no control over, and now that Tsukune's a vampire I can't really say anything._

Her other self nodded approvingly. _**We will have to tell him about that. He has no idea how long he's extended his life, and he's probably worrying over now unnecessary things. I have no problem with her sharing our bed if Tsukune wills it.**_

The blush became brighter. _We did get trounced pretty handily, didn't we?_

_**I shudder to think of what he could have done had he sought out any of the other rarities in that realm. His illusions alone were enough to incapacitate **_**me**_** in pain, if he had any more of the elements under his command…**_

She _did_ shudder at that. _His control is horrible though. If he had been able to direct and transform the ice to his will we would have been in a lot more trouble._

_**True,**_ the vampire admitted, _**which is why I challenged him as soon as I did, though that was only a small part of the reason, I confess. Had he trained with the Snow Woman beforehand he might have relied on that too much, and I wanted a fight.**_

_You wanted a brawl._

She shrugged. _**Call it what you will. In any case, he beat us, and rather badly at that. I will gladly call him my lover, and be it eternity or otherwise, he is our mate.**_

_I've known that for a long time you know._

Inner Moka tried as best she could to hide the flush on her cheeks, regardless of whether or not she was invisible to the outside world and confined to a Rosario. _**…Shut up.**_

Moka's mental laughter chimed like bells in her head, and outwardly she had to hold her hands over her mouth to keep from breaking out into merriment. _At least you're honest about it, unlike before._

The vampire within winced. _**Point conceded. You remember our agreement, I hope?**_

Her face almost lit up the room. _How could I forget?_

A ravenous grin formed on the vampire's elegant lips. _**Good. The least you can do now is take up his other side. Just because we know we won't be alone doesn't mean we should let any of them hog him all to themselves.**_

_I was planning on it!_ Her pink-haired counterpart retorted defensively.

_**Hmph. Plan faster next time.**_

She rolled her eyes. The intravenous drip was already getting annoying, and it would be all but impossible to arrange herself around his side while trying to avoid both of their tubes. Instead, she chose the natural way out. She bit her lip as she pulled the needle from her hand, while cursing the existence of needles in the first place. Fangs were so much handier. Plucking the bag from its stand she bit down, relieved in the physicality of drinking blood. Being fed it intravenously kept the thirst down, but it really didn't do anything for her throat. Like a juice box she had soon sucked the bag dry, and sighed happily. It may have been lukewarm, but at least it was sealed so it didn't taste quite as old as it was. Nothing compared to Tsukune's though.

Maneuvering herself out of bed, she quietly covered the now whimpering Yukari with the warm sheets, thankful that it calmed her instantly. The hospital gown did nothing for her, and just like when Mizore had had the honor of wearing the infernal garment, they had given her one three sizes larger than she actually was. She crept over as quietly as she could, carefully moving the covers over his side until she could raise his arm and get under the covers in one fell swoop. It would appear Tsukune was a heavy sleeper, because she managed to inch her way into his side with no difficulty before lowering his arm around her.

The bed was tiny, barely enough to fit two snugly, but that just made her position all the more likeable. Pressed as she was into him, she could smell him perfectly, hold him perfectly. She probably would have never gotten up the nerve to do this, or think of it in the first place, had she not seen Mizore with him, so for that she was grateful. The feeling was indescribable, and she sighed happily again as she relaxed against him. Kurumu was going to flip when she woke up, but right then, everything was simply perfect.

"I love you Tsukune," she whispered softly, before yawning and shutting her tired eyes to the world once more.

_**I love you Tsukune.**_

And so Moka Akashiya went to sleep, for once both with a smile.

…

Kurumu Kurono was in the midst of a crisis of sorts.

She had always been a blunt person, be it charming the entire school in the desire to find her 'destined one,' or pulling aforementioned destined one into her bust to gain his attention. She felt no need to hide who she was, and if she wanted something she was going to make it known she wanted it. It pained her to see how far her sparring partner and friend had gotten in so little time, but when she thought about it she couldn't really be surprised. Tsukune wasn't the type to fall for instant sexual gratification, and though Mizore's trend of stalking the young man was a bit unnerving during their earlier years, that just made her actual physical touches that much more special. She was the epitome of 'look, not touch' but when she touched, she made sure all her emotions were conveyed with complete clarity.

Her plans had, for the most part, completely backfired on her. No man could go completely unaffected when pulled into _her_ bosom, but it _had_ numbed him to the fact that she would never consider doing that to anyone else. She needed to switch gears, and fast. Tsukune was being taken away before her eyes, and she couldn't stand the thought of not being able to be with him. It just wasn't fair that he wasn't responding to her as well! Admittedly, she hadn't meant for him to see her naked back at his house—at least not before she had it all planned—but that just emphasized how little he cared for the physicality of love without the right emotion behind it.

It hurt to think that he might not have sensed all the very real love behind everything she did. At first it had been a petty grudge against Moka, but then it had changed, and over time it continued to change, continued to evolve, until she honestly couldn't think of being with anyone but Tsukune. But really, why did she have to fall in love with the one man in the entire Youkai and human realms that would resist physical advances the likes of hers?

Yet because of that, she understood why the others were after him as well. He was undeniably pure and kindhearted, and now even with incomprehensible power under his control he still hadn't let it change him. He was maturing, obviously, and she had seen that even when he was learning to use his Ghoul abilities. He was learning that some things in the Youkai realm simply couldn't be dealt with through discussion, and sometimes one needed to _make_ the other see their feelings through their fists. The first time he had transformed she had fallen even deeper in love with him, and watching him fight so hard to protect them all later made her heart ache in her chest.

She didn't want to admit that her destined one may in fact be destined for another, but time and again it was shown how much he cared for _all_ of them. He was too pure, too kindhearted, and he knew his indecision was going to haunt both him, and them.

When he had transfigured, despite the situation, she could do nothing but stare.

Over the years the naïve, childish face Tsukune had held had changed, finessed into that of a man. His eyes were the only constant; even when they continued to narrow and thin into the same look of his vampire transformation, they still held the same kindness. His body had changed the most, she would know. She had all but violated him during their first year after all, and she knew back then he had been a relatively thin, pretty normal teenager. He was lean, not really scrawny, but it showed he didn't really take athleticism seriously, though he wasn't against participating. Going to the sea with him in their second year made her realize the changes, but watching him fight Moka had hammered them home.

He definitely wasn't a thin teenager anymore. Muscle once only used at specific times had been honed, defined beyond doubt. His now pale flesh looked like it had been carved from stone, and the sheer power held within his blood was enough to overcome the one she _and_ Mizore had trained for years to defeat. She had always known that underneath his kind exterior he had a line that one never, _ever_ wanted to cross. She had only seen him genuinely angry not even a handful of times, and she knew even when he was a Ghoul she never wanted to push him that far.

Body, mind, and heart, he was everything she had ever wanted. She couldn't really get angry at the others for wanting him too, when she above all knew why they did. His heart was simply too large; he couldn't bring himself to hate any of them, and he couldn't bring himself to stop loving any one of them either. He had put himself before a monster at least ten times stronger than he was then to protect Moka; placed himself in front of an irritated vampiress to protect her; in front of angry Lizardmen to protect Yukari; delivered himself into the jaws of man-eating plants for Ruby; and into the clutches of a Krakken for Mizore. He was selfless in the very definition of the word, and each and every one of them had a reason to love him back. Now with shining silver hair and bright red eyes, Tsukune had become her fantasy's fantasy.

But a piece of her heart broke when she woke up and saw both Moka and Mizore cuddled up in his bed with him. It fit her thoughts so perfectly she wanted to cry. The small, cramped bed fit him in the middle, with both women tucked into each side. Moka was under the covers with him even! In the small, cramped space that was Tsukune's life, there just didn't seem to be any place for her.

She stood up and stretched, her muscles tight and knotted after sleeping in the uncomfortable chair all night. The light coming in through the blinds showed it was morning, and she wiped the crust from her eyes before padding softly to his bedside. He looked just as peaceful as he did before, and she honestly couldn't believe she hadn't thought of slipping into bed with him. Then again, she honestly couldn't believe the Snow Woman had thought of it in the first place! That seemed more like her territory than the ice maiden's.

Her hand reached out against her will, rubbing over the soft skin of his cheek lovingly. "Moka's always saying 'know your place.' Where is my place in your life, Tsukune?" she whispered to no one.

That simple statement Inner Moka said so often was in fact the pinnacle of adolescent reasoning, the one question they asked themselves day after day, night after night. She had more of a grip on that answer than most of them, for she knew who she belonged with. The question came back now as to _where_. How such a seemingly straightforward question could make her heart ache like this she didn't know, but it hurt nonetheless.

She was startled when a hand placed itself over her own on his face, and she looked over to see a familiar set of emerald eyes gazing up at her. She shouldn't have been surprised; the fact that she was in Tsukune's bed in the first place implied she had woken up at least once already. Her own eyes stung at the understanding she saw there, and she swallowed the lump in her throat.

"This bed may be too small, but his heart isn't."

The lump returned with a vengeance, and she knew tears were gathering in her eyes now.

Moka kissed Tsukune's cheek lightly before cautiously removing herself from his bed and stretching lazily. Kurumu had to feel a bit jealous that even in the oversized hospital gown the vampire still looked stunning, but the thought was fleeting at best. She yawned widely, and the mistress of illusions smiled, however unwillingly. Vampires were the same as the rest of them, except in a few things.

When the pinkette turned to regard her again, the soft smile made her feel like the world could be made right again, no matter how much had gone wrong. "I was planning on telling Tsukune this first, but I should probably tell you before you do something you'll regret. Tsukune and I are _immortal_ unless someone ends our lives prematurely, and vampires don't have a problem with multiple lovers. Even if I become his mate, it's not unusual. Kokoa is my _half_ sister you know, and I've never thought of her as anything less than a 'real' sister…though she is a bit clingy."

The succubus was flabbergasted. "Are…are you saying you…_don't care_…if I'm with him too?"

Moka cocked an eyebrow. "Why would I? He's a vampire now, he's as immortal as I am, and free to do the same things vampires have always done. It wouldn't be fair to confine him to human limitations and morals when he isn't one anymore."

"You're…taking this awfully well."

She shrugged. "I never thought I would find another vampire who could be my mate, the thought had never occurred to me. Believe me, you wouldn't want to meet some of the guys around our age. They don't deserve to be called super vampires."

"Watered down?" Kurumu inquired frankly.

"No," Moka responded with a grimace, "worse. Some are just plain pigs. They flaunt their power shamelessly, and bed whatever starry-eyed fangirl that gets drawn to them. Even for vampires, there are limits to debauchery. I for one would never consider any of them mate material. Besides, they're all weaker than me anyways."

The violet-eyed young woman laughed. "So you stumbled on the one-in-a-trillion chance like the rest of us, huh? Not only is he a vampire, but he's also stronger than you!"

"Irony knows no bounds, ne?"

"I hate irony," the mistress of illusions muttered bitterly.

Her vampire friend smiled empathetically. "You aren't the only one."

The two looked at each other for a while after that, before smiling and breaking out into simultaneous laughter. That wasn't a conversation either of them expected to have, ever. Still, it _was_ hopelessly funny.

Unexpectedly, a bolt of lightning blasted between their faces with the reverberation of a thunderclap, jostling Ruby, Yukari, and Kokoa out of their sleeps in an instant. The three looked in surprise to the charred hole in the wall between the two stunned monsters, before forcing their stiff necks over to the source.

Tsukune Aono's right hand sparked with remnants of vividly bright electricity as he rolled over, and after nestling closer to Mizore and throwing aforementioned hand over her body, he hugged her surprisingly still asleep form to him. **"Five more minutes, Mom…"**

They didn't know whether they should laugh or worry at the absurdity of the situation. The dam broke when Ruby muffled her first giggle, which became another, and soon they were all laughing like lunatics. When they finally calmed down, Kurumu walked over to the blood pack by his side and poked it suspiciously. "What the hell have they got him on?"

"Whatever it is I want some of it!" Kokoa exclaimed, more relieved than she could express that her sister was finally awake again. She had been admitted for anemia the same time as Tsukune, and simply hadn't waked after falling asleep.

Yukari eyed her idol questioningly. "What happened to your blood pack?"

Moka rubbed the back of her head like someone they all knew very well was prone to do so often. "Ahhehehe, I kind of drank it already."

Kurumu rolled her eyes. "Why does that not surprise me?"

The youngest witch among them finally seemed to notice the other occupant of Tsukune's bed, and her eyes widened before she bounded over into the opposing bed. "Hey, no fair ~desu!"

Of course, by jumping so carelessly into his bed, she clearly didn't pay attention to the tube still pumping new blood into his system. Needless to say, the vampire was none too happy when he was so abruptly wrenched awake because of the awful pain the jerky motions gave to his intravenous. Anything electrical in the room flashed on and off as the pint-sized witch became the newest light source in the room, and by the time Tsukune realized what he was doing Yukari's hair was spiked every which way under her smoking witch's hat.

"**Oh my goodness, Yukari-chan! Are you all right!"**

The extra-crispy witch smiled drunkenly, releasing a cute cough that let smoke loose from her mouth. "Weeeee…look at all the pretty lights ~desuuuuuuuuuu…" She collapsed into Tsukune's waiting arms, and where he looked horror-struck, Kurumu couldn't restrain her wide smirk.

"About time someone shocked some sense into the twerp!"

"**Not helping!"**

"Oh please," the succubus scoffed, waltzing over to their side of the bed and prodding the unconscious teen to prove her point. Yukari merely slurred a giggle as drool threatened to fall from her grinning mouth.

"Ahhh…Moka-san…Tsukune-san…not there…" She fell back into inebriated giggles with the stupid smile still in place, and the two mentioned turned a newly discovered shade of red.

"See? She's fine. A little well-done, but fine."

"**Geez, what a way to wake up,"** Tsukune grumbled sulkily as he carried her back to the bed she had originally been sleeping on. After tucking the slightly charred girl back into the covers, he rubbed his face, wary of the tube still connected to his arm. **"I've had enough of this thing."** He ripped off the tape holding the plastic injector in place and quickly pulled it from his flesh with a hiss of pain.

Moka calmly unhooked the bag from its stand and handed it to the brooding young man. "Don't want it to go to waste."

He nodded a wordless thank-you as he took the item from her outstretched hand, and pretty soon the bag was nothing but garbage. He made a face as he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. **"You know when you leave pop out for too long in the sun and forget it's there? It tasted like that."**

Kokoa put her nose in the air snottily. "You've just been spoiled, that's all. Most of us don't have the luxury of drinking from real live sources every day." She nearly burst into flame when she saw the other girls rearranging their hair to the side. "And most of us don't have so many willing volunteers, you damn incubus!"

That stopped him short. **"What now?"**

"Haven't you figured out by now that your bites don't hurt?" she all but shouted in disbelief.

Tsukune merely scratched the side of his head. **"They don't?"**

The redheaded vampire slapped her hand to her face in frustration. "You cause pleasure, dimwit! Anyone could figure that out after seeing you bite someone _once!_ You didn't honestly think they were in _pain_ when you bit them, did you!"

They could practically see the wheels turning in his head as he examined the floor, and they all waited for the subsequent unconsciousness that would ensue. What they hadn't been expecting was the small, almost imperceptible smile that tugged at his lips, and they gulped when his eyes shot up to look at them, an unknown glee hidden far beneath the crimson orbs. It was barely noticeable, but Moka saw the way his gaze held her own for longer than the others, and the grin's width became ever so slightly larger.

Both Moka's chuckled nervously.

_**Oh…crap.**_

_We are so screwed…aren't we?_

…_**Depends in what sense you mean. If all goes according to plan…**_

Moka fainted immediately.

Mizore Shirayuki rubbed the sleep from her eyes as she examined the situation she had woken into. From the blackened hole in the wall, to the panicked occupants, to the unconscious vampire, to the—was she _glowing?_—witch.

"Okaaay, what'd I miss?"

…

The doctors were stunned of course when they examined the patients and found them in almost full health, other than some minor muscular discomfort, which was to be expected. They too had seen the challenge between the two vampires, and after watching all that they did to each other they had assumed they would have a couple of long-term patients. Not even two days later they were both discharged, though they were advised against going to school for the day. Neither had any complaint about that, that was for certain.

The same couldn't be said of their friends, but Yukari had rebounded quickly and now they were all in classes. Tsukune was a bit surprised at the fact that Kurumu had so little protests to that; normally if just he and Moka had they day off to themselves the succubus would no doubt simply skip. He wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth, and so he and Moka found themselves walking around the academy grounds.

After what had happened, he didn't exactly know how to define their relationship. Her inner self accepted him now, but did that mean they were together? Normally he would think the kiss they shared cemented that, but if that were the only criteria the events that happened after sure put that out of whack. The really bad thing was he couldn't even say he didn't enjoy it.

The green-eyed woman beside him noticed his introspective mood with a pout. They were finally alone; not where she wanted, but alone nonetheless. "Penny for your thoughts?"

Tsukune smiled warmly. **"They're always free for you. I'm just wondering…what are we? We're a couple now, right?"**

She returned the gesture happily. "You could say that."

His warm smile turned into one of his face-splitting grins—now with the addition of potentially lethal fangs—and she had to widen her own. His happiness was always contagious; it was one of his best features. It soon faltered, and he rubbed the back of his neck; a sure sign he was nervous. **"I hope you don't mind me asking, but why didn't your inner self rip me a new one when the others…you know…"**

"Kissed you stupid?" she supplied, her smirk still in place.

He almost tripped. **"I-I guess."**

The pink-haired vampire twirled around playfully, leaning forward with her hands clasped behind her back and an amused expression on her face. "Let me ask _you_ something: how long do you think you'll live?" The answer was on the tip of his tongue, but at the last minute he wavered, suddenly unsure. Seeing this, she rephrased the question. "How long do you think _I'll_ live?"

That one he knew. **"Well, if human legends are anything to go by, which since you're standing right in front of me they obviously are, vampires are supposed to be immortal; right?"** She waited for what he just said to sink in, rocking back and forth on her feet. His reptilian eyes widened when he realized what she was getting at. **"N-No way."**

"You're not human anymore, Tsukune. Not in the slightest. The fact that you share all of my weaknesses now proves that. We're different from all other monsters, we don't die out unless we decide we've had enough or get killed. We also don't care about how many lovers we take, we're immortal beings. A long time ago we decided we would only _marry_ within our race, to keep our power pure, but as you know no one cares about that anymore. Besides, from the get-go vampires were breaking that rule; it was a prideful, unrealistic law in the first place. It may seem weird to you since you were once human, but I don't have any problem with the others kissing you. At the end of the day it'll be just me and you."

There was no mistaking the implications of that. **"S-So…Mizore, Kurumu, everyone…"**

"Will die before us," she answered sadly. "They'll live for a couple of centuries at least, and since witches share Youkai longevity, they'll live well past one hundred looking maybe forty by human standards…but eventually, they'll die. The Snow People are so close to dying out because their fertile years are so early by monster standards, and not enough of the previous generation chose mates when they should have."

His eyes turned to the ground. He knew that all too well. Mizore had been so desperate to know the touch of a man she trusted she had offered herself to him, even if it was for just one night. Moka saw the pain in his eyes, and reached for his hand comfortingly. "I love you, and so do they. You love me, but you love them too. Believe me Tsukune, that by itself is more than a lot of vampire mistresses can claim."

"**I…I just…wow. This was not a conversation I ever thought I'd have with my first girlfriend."**

"Normal by our standards though, right?" she asked with yet another smile, and he laughed.

"**You're right about that."**

She tiptoed upwards to catch his unprepared lips, and he moaned lightly as he readily reciprocated, still kind of dazed he could kiss the untouchable Moka, his absolute dream. He tugged her closer impatiently, and she sighed breathily as she was meshed against him. A very real spark jumped between them when they pulled away, and she giggled as she held her tingling lips.

"That gets better every time." He nodded his affirmation as he kept her close, and she was all too happy to stay in the embrace, reveling in the shivers that went through her when he kissed the top of her head and inhaled the scent of her hair. "Would you like to come over to my room tonight? We can start those cooking lessons you put off."

"**I'd love to."**

Inner Moka smiled.

Phase one successful.

…

The sun was low in the sky when Tsukune Aono made his way to Moka Akashiya's dorm room. Nervous would be an understatement for the jittery Third Year, he was utterly terrified. He didn't have a wide selection of clothing, but he hoped the black jeans went well enough with his white button-up. One might not normally expect a change in clothing to be needed for such a casual meeting, but not only was it the first time he had been in her room, but it was the first time he had been in her room as her _boyfriend_.

He wasn't about to undergo another humiliating experience like he and Inner Moka's first 'date.' Tagging along with her when he was in a track suit and she looked like royalty made him feel like less than dirt, and he had sworn he would never again look out of place at her side, not if he could help it. Even if cooking lessons had been distinctively specified, he wasn't going to take the chance. It could still pass as casual.

By the time he got to her dorm he was so nervous he wasn't even sure if he could knock anymore. With his luck he'd end up destroying the door and ruining their evening before it even started. With a great, shuddering breath, he knocked as softly as he could, and was instantly relieved when the door didn't blast off its hinges. The sound of utensils clattering was heard, and the shuffling of someone evidently rushing to answer the door.

Despite himself, he smiled when she opened the door, straightening out her clothing in the process. She was immaculate even in the seemingly simple red skirt and white blouse, and her Rosario was drawing his attention to more cleavage than he was used to seeing on the vampire. Buttons usually done up, _weren't_, and he gulped heavily.

"**G-G-Good evening, Moka-san!"**

She scowled mockingly before grabbing the back the back of his head and pulling him down to her. The kiss was hot and electric, completely unexpected, and when it was done any nervousness the male vampire might have been feeling before was a forgotten memory.

"M-o-k-a," she enunciated slowly, emphasizing each letter with a poke to his chest.

Tsukune blushed brightly, which showed up even more with his pallid vampiric complexion. **"Moka."**

"I'll keep doing that until you get it right, even if we're in the middle of school."

He chuckled. **"Promise?"**

The young woman sputtered at being called out so candidly before regaining her usual composure. "Count on it."

This was how it should have always been. There should have been no weeks of silence, no awkward glances and pained heartbeats. They should have been filled with days of playful banter, soft touches, mischievous glances; the days of two lovers. Knowing that days like those were so close made Moka smile, and Tsukune gladly mimicked it, though he didn't know what she was thinking. Seeing her smile always made him smile too; that was how it had always been.

"**So what's the first item on the agenda?"**

She shook herself free of her reverie. "I thought I'd start us off simple. Spaghetti and meat-sauce sound good to you?"

"**You could have said mud pies and it would have sounded good to me,"** he cajoled cheerily, and she laughed while trying to keep the blush to a minimum.

As she lead him to the small yet extravagantly kept kitchenette, he had to marvel at her room. He barely had the essentials, but even scarcely decorated as it was Moka's room exuded the grace of an aristocrat. Surely antique lamps kept the room illuminated—since she had kept from using the annoyingly bright plain light-bulbs all the rooms were uniformly situated with—and the ambient glow turned the simple walls into tapestries of oranges and reds. Unlike him, her bookshelf was filled to capacity, ranging from imposing books he had never even heard of, to the simplicity of shoujo manga. The room itself was clean, but it still had the character she admired so much in the ancient, dark appearance of the dorms themselves.

Of course, his eyes eventually led him to the one thing he would have rather avoided, and it was only made worse when he saw that her bed was in fact dressed with dark red silk. The image of his vampire goddess wearing nothing but that sprung to mind unbidden, and he mentally slapped himself a few times. _Head out of the gutter Tsukune! Out. Of. The. Gutter!_ Try as he might to convince himself, his body quite liked the way his mind was thinking, and that made it twice as hard.

While he was busy doing that, Moka was having a hard time keeping her eyes off of _him._ She simply loved how he looked with silver hair, and the red eyes that seemed to pierce her very soul never failed in making her shiver. Even dressed as plainly as he was he looked amazingly refined, and this time the urge to bite him wasn't the only desire running through her.

Unknowingly, they both gulped at the same time.

Beckoning him over, he returned obediently and she handed him an apron before she donned hers. He grinned as he followed suit and rolled up his sleeves, even though the vegetables and other cooking paraphernalia on the counters looked nothing less than imposing. He couldn't believe he was alone with Moka, at long last.

"So!" she began with a deep breath in, "this is how it goes!"

Thus began their very first cooking lesson, and more or less their very first real date. She guided him through the preparation in the carefree, always educational manner she somehow managed to do everything in, and laughter was a common occurrence among the many mishaps along the way. Electricity not at all from the blood Tsukune had consumed that morning jumped between them many a time when they both reached for the same utensil at the same time, and the way she guided his hand while they cut the tomatoes sent pleasant shocks through both of them.

The entire process became a test in self-control as well as a tutorial in cuisine. There was no question of the tension that hung in the air like steam in a sauna, and the wants of the two vampires slowly but surely began to erode their inhibitions. Once innocent examinations of progress turned into lingering stares, and the simple act of passing by each other became opportunities to touch; a gentle brush of her hair, a loving stroke of his back. A very familiar heat was building in their bodies, and for once neither of them had any reason, or desire, to stop it from doing so.

It was becoming harder and harder for him to keep from reaching out, from pulling her into his arms and losing control. She smelled delicious, and in more ways than one. Her entire body seemed to call to him; a hot, purely carnal cry that clawed at his principles and gentlemanly nature. Her scent filled his senses, mixed with the herbs and spice of the pasta they were making and set his blood to a boil. It was only because of who he was that he was able to hold back.

Moka was in much the same situation. The places he had touched burned as if branded, tightening her skin and lighting her nerves. Her fingers itched to wind into his brilliant hair, pull his face to hers and throw off her reticence. Her fangs longed to sink into his flesh, to taste the peerless quality of his blood just as surely as her body wanted him to sink into her. She throbbed for him, for the heady, masculine scent radiating from his skin. It was only because of who she was that she was able to hold back.

When it finally came time to stir the sauce after everything was done, their lips were but a breath apart, and the meal a sidelong distraction. The sound of sizzling meat in the thick creation matched the pulses of the two teens perfectly, and even the act of mixing lest it burn became an unhurried procedure to allow more eye contact. She nearly melted when he slid behind her and pressed her back to his chest, and suddenly holding the wooden spoon was given new meaning when his larger hand closed in over hers. She could feel his heart beating strong against his ribs, rumbling deep into her chest, echoing her own in beautiful harmony. His breath, soft and measured, flowed over the hypersensitive flesh of her neck, and she resisted the shudders that wanted so badly to rock through her.

They were coming undone, relinquishing themselves to an abyss that had heralded to them for years, and all in the simple act of making dinner. It was taking everything she had to keep her breathing steady, and tried without success to keep her mind on something other than the body pressed against hers. She knew with just a little more pressure she would feel what her other self had so intimately rubbed herself against days earlier, and the logic against such an action was quickly being incinerated in the fire growing inside her. She had never wanted anything as badly as she wanted him, but all too soon she realized their food was ready.

"It's done, Tsukune," she whispered hoarsely, and the sigh that ghosted over her neck spoke of his reluctance to accept that.

With the table already set in preparation, there was naught to do but prepare their plates, but Moka still dreaded the loss of contact when he pulled away. The tension didn't go away; it held its place in the air even as they sat down to eat. It was clearly the last thing either of them wanted to do, but being who they were they couldn't bring themselves to do anything but.

It was a wasted effort, for her eyes followed every movement of his utensils, trailed up to his pale mouth revealing gleaming fangs before the painstakingly made sustenance disappeared. His eyes tracked each shift of her muscles, tried in vain to tear themselves from her full lips as they closed in on every bite. No words were spoken, no words could be said to do justice to the atmosphere around them. So focused was he on her, he didn't notice the dark red sauce drip from the pasta on his fork, right onto his pristine white shirt.

But _she_ did.

As if hypnotized she moved, drawn by the stain on the canvas of white. His gaze stayed fixed on her, and he froze when she reached forward and scraped the blend from his chest. The scarlet liquid on her pale fingers accelerated his heartbeat, and even as her tongue flicked out to clean them, it dripped down onto her blouse. She looked down at the blemish on her once spotless garment, and their eyes met once more.

Something snapped.

Her hands moved before he could protest, grabbing the one of his nearest her and bringing it up to her chest. With a small metal _clink_ a silver Rosario soon rested in his hand, and in front of his transfixed eyes the true form of Moka awakened. Crimson irises identical to his own burned into him, dark and lustful as the moon bled scarlet outside, bathing the interior with sensuous, ethereal red light through the window.

Then, with no warning, she calmly reached forward and simply tore the shirt from his body. Buttons rained around the room while she leaned forward hungrily and devoured his lips, impatiently pushing the wrecked shirt from his shoulders in the desire to see more of his alabaster flesh. His instincts, primed and ready for a long time now, rose to life in a burst of passion, and he eagerly returned the kiss as he shrugged off the ruined cloth, freeing his hands to fervently grab hold of her.

She moaned into his mouth when he pulled her to him, moving her to straddle his lap as their hands roamed each other's bodies. Her rich voice escaped her lips once more when she felt the proof of his arousal pushing against her, and a deep, guttural groan came from him when she ground her hips into his. Her womanhood ached at the throaty purr issued from her soon-to-be lover, and she gasped in pleased anticipation when his hands imitated hers and ripped open her chemise. There was no hesitation in the action, and she felt no regret at losing the blouse as his powerful arms tore it from her in halves. This was the passion she knew he had bottled inside him, the wanton lust that she smelled simmering the entire evening. She wanted _more_.

Her fangs nipped at his neck playfully, and then unexpectedly she was on her back, his fangs just as enthusiastically scraping along hers. Nerves flashed to life under the teasing assault, and her breathing rapidly degraded into lustful pants as the sharp canines marked her skin, claimed her as his.

"_**Tsukune…the choker…please…!"**_

He understood what she wanted easily enough, and soon her whole neck was available to his lips as the black leather belt was discarded somewhere unimportant. Blunt nails scratched at his back in entreaty to go lower, and they broke skin when he kissed his way down her collarbone, softly scoring her body before kissing the hollow of her throat, earning another drawn out moan from the vampiress under him.

The flame was burning brighter with every passing second of his beautiful torture, but she wanted, _needed_, more. Making full use of her vampiric strength she reversed their positions, pushing herself flush against his confined erection. A hiss of pleasure came from the male under her, and she smirked confidently, her pale skin flushed. It may be her first time, but this was instinct wired into the deepest depth of her marrow, and she was set to enjoy it to the fullest. Certain his eyes were pinned on her, she slowly raised her hands to her elegant white bra, and in one deft flick of her fingers the front clasp came apart. Now as nude as he was from the waist up, she reveled in the deep-seated lust and awe she saw in his reptilian orbs.

"**Oh god…"**

She had always had pride in her body, but his reverent whisper brought a whole new kind of satisfaction to her, one that wound the coil within ever tighter. The suspense was killing her, and she leaned down coyly, dragging her erect nipples against his chiseled chest. She made no effort to restrain the hum of joy that brought her, and hid her smirk when his gaze darkened. _**"Didn't I tell you not to be afraid of touching me anymore?"**_

A contented moan escaped her when he brushed his hands over her sides hesitantly, drawing his way up to run down the smooth frame of her firm breasts. She arched up, eager for more attention, and her mouth opened in a soundless scream when his lips closed over one of the pink nubs. _**"Yesss, just like that…oh god…"**_

Careful to avoid his fangs, he worried the swollen flesh between his front teeth, and was rewarded with an unreserved buck of her hips as she pushed her chest into him harder, all but begging for more. Instinct was guiding him now, all his senses attuned solely to her. Flicking his tongue over the peak, she shuddered, and he kissed his way through the valley of her breasts, savoring the taste of her increasingly perspiring skin until he could repeat the process with her neglected twin.

Her fingers were clawing at the carpet, desperate to grab hold of anything as the static shocks of pleasure crawled up her body. She had never imagined she could get so close to the edge just from his ministrations on her bountiful breasts, but that was exactly what was happening. Her world shifted when he once again flipped them over, and she would have protested had he not began trailing down her body, setting delicate kisses all the way down her firm stomach. She writhed beneath him as the unusual, sensual act set to burning her from the inside out, and when she felt his hands on her skirt she nearly whimpered in need. Right then she hated clothing with every fiber of her existence.

"**I hope you aren't too attached to this skirt."**

She had never heard his voice like that before, so dark and ravaged by lust it had turned into nothing but a gravelly rumble that resounded through her whole body. Knowing full well what he was asking she merely lifted her hips, and he responded by tearing the article from her like it was paper, leaving her clad in only her underwear and socks.

A whine came from her unbidden when he restarted his trail, but instead of going where she wanted him to, he instead lifted her leg and continued on, worshiping the beautiful body in all of its glory. He pulled her socks off slowly, making sure to lavish each inch of flesh as it was revealed before he went on, and by the time she was left in just her panties she was practically sobbing. She wouldn't beg, she would never beg, but she was getting awfully close to never. There was a damp spot that stood out clearly on the silky fabric, and he had the sense of mind to gulp as he timidly removed the undergarment. She was all too happy to comply, and when her glistening sex was exposed he nearly fainted.

He was so hard it was painful, and the smell of her arousal was unlike anything he had ever known, especially with his enhanced senses. He had waited too long to do this, to touch her so intimately, and there was no way in hell he was going to rush it. He couldn't stop himself from tasting her, and she cried out in joy when her throbbing folds were finally given the attention they so terribly needed. Never in her wildest dreams could she have guessed Tsukune was such an intense lover, but god help her she was going to enjoy it as much as she possibly could.

The pleasure coursed through her in white-hot waves as he licked at her womanhood, and no amount of experience could amount to the zeal he paid to her. He had restrained himself from biting her yet, but the unique taste that was one hundred percent hers was having very similar effects on him. He delved deeper, prodding her weeping petals apart, and her back arched off the carpet with a wail of ecstasy as her legs clamped like a vice around his head. Strong as she was, he was just as strong, if not stronger, and it didn't bother him. The sounds she was making were driving him insane with need, and so hoping the stories he had heard were correct, he moved his focus to the top of her slit, brushing his tongue forcefully under the hood of flesh he found there.

Moka's red eyes widened as the coil that had been slowly, agonizingly, winding tighter in her snapped violently, soaking every nerve in debilitating pleasure that curled her toes and made her scream into her hands else she wake the entire dorm. Her mind shut down, content to ride out the waves of heavenly euphoria in ignorant bliss, unrepentantly bucking her hips to prolong the stay in paradise.

Tsukune had never seen anything so erotic in his life. His white-haired goddess, his all-powerful vampiress shuddering in the effects of orgasm, her face flushed with divine contentment. When her legs finally went limp around his head he removed himself from her, crawling up her body and claiming her lips once more. She moaned as their tongues wrestled with each other, and the thought that she was tasting herself on his lips sent fresh moisture to her core. Trembling with pleasure but not nearly sated, the haze of lust was so heavy on her mind it was only then that she finally registered the fact that he was still wearing his pants. That _had_ to be uncomfortable.

Recovered enough to regain motor control, she playfully pushed him off her and smirked when he stumbled back onto her bed, exactly where she wanted him to be. Standing up in all her elegant beauty, Tsukune could only stare. Bathed as she was in the bloody light of the moon, the fine sheen of sweat on her body shimmered into an unearthly glow that made her truly seem like a being from another realm; gorgeous, in a deadly, beautiful way.

His vampiress stalked towards him slowly, allowing him to take in the sight fully, before bending down to where he sat and devouring his mouth. Putting a finger on his chest mischievously when she pulled away, she pushed him to his back, and her nimble fingers soon made short work of his jeans. She had the sense of mind to keep _them_ intact, after all, he was going to need something to wear in the morning. She wasted no time, dragging both his pants and boxers from him at once. She made sure he was fully naked before she allowed her eyes to trail up his muscular form, and by then he had propped himself up on his elbows, heatedly drinking in the sight before him.

Thoughts from days earlier were proven when she took in his hard arousal, and she licked her lips. Eternity was going to be very, very fun. His body had been chiseled into a work of art, marred as it was by scars he was only made more beautiful in her eyes. She crawled up his body just as he had hers, and slowly rubbed her wetness against the throbbing shaft as she wound her arms around his neck.

"_**That was wonderful, Tsukune. I think you deserve a reward."**_

He merely kissed her neck lovingly, and to her chagrin her whole body nearly collapsed right then and there. He had been infinitely patient, just as she knew somewhere in her mind he would be. They were both more than ready now, and his hot flesh pulsed in her hand as she aligned them. Just pressing the tip against her caused delicious shivers to run through her, and as she lowered herself it was only made better as he pushed her wet folds apart, sinking deeper into her. When she finally came to the proof of her innocence, she hesitated for only a moment before dropping herself fully, sheathing him completely inside her in one thrust.

That had been the moment he was waiting for. He knew a woman's first time was supposed to hurt, and as he relished in the wonderful feeling of her inner walls wrapping around him, he leaned forward and plunged his fangs into her neck.

Pain and pleasure lost all boundaries for Moka Akashiya.

She shook on top of him, her body conflicted between the glorious feeling of his girth stretching her and the mind-numbing rapture brought on by his bite; the pain of losing her virginity completely and utterly forgotten. The combination overloaded her sanity, ran her full-tilt to the brink of the abyss she had fallen from just minutes earlier and threw her off once more. There was a sense of magnificent weightlessness as she fell headlong into bliss, and with detached interest she made a mental note to let him suck her blood more often.

Tsukune's sanity was faring no better. Lost as she was in the throes of climax her muscles were squeezing him relentlessly, spasmodically quivering around his aching sex and pushing him closer to the brink than he would have liked to be so soon. Untold power flowed into him as he drank the blood which had birthed his transformation, and the taste was just as addicting as he knew it would be. There was simply no way to describe it, he just knew deep in the core of his being that it was _her_. It took everything he had to hold off the fall between the two stimuli, and he smiled despite himself when he felt her fangs graze his collarbone.

"_**I love you Tsukune,"**_ she whispered heatedly as he wrapped his arms around her, and she loved the way their slick skin rubbed together so marvelously as he ran his hands down her back. Restored to some sense of rationale, she could rejoice in the full experience of him being embedded so deeply inside her, and when she rocked forward experimentally sparks flew in front of her eyes.

His profound crimson irises glowed in the light of the room as he held her gaze, overwhelmed by the act they were performing at long last. **"I've always loved you, Moka."**

Her eyes misted as she leaned forward to kiss him, and a deep groan came from the both of them as they established a rhythm, slow and beautiful as she sat atop him. His length rubbed places she never even knew she had, and his course pubic hair scraped mercilessly against her clit from their position. Her fingers dug into his back as the pleasure both eased and shocked into her, and she grinned when she felt his hands encompass her soft, firm rear to help her along in an effort to gain more friction. The strong fingers kneading her ass felt amazing as they pushed her into him harder, and the deeper penetration was an added bonus.

Desperation was kicking in, they could both feel the fog of desire clouding their systems as primal lust became their only goal. She had already come twice, and she knew he had yet to feel the same indescribable release. His muscles were taut, barely restrained hunger soaked deep into every strand of sinew, and the pace wasn't fast enough for either of them anymore.

Try as they might their frenzied motions relieved nothing, and finally Tsukune growled low in his throat and wrenched them to the side, pinning her back to the mattress with him firmly on top. She snarled back playfully, reaching up for his lips again, and he was only too happy to comply as he pulled back before embedding himself powerfully into her silken core. She cried out as he moved in her, and it was swallowed by his mouth as their lips crashed into each other, bruised and swollen from the force behind their joining.

Each hard thrust reverberated through her body, bounced her generous bosom and set every nerve alight. He hissed as she tightened around him, but there was no slowing now. Nothing was withheld, this was a desperate charge for the single-minded desire that their instincts longed for so badly. Sweat dripped down their bodies as the two vampires connected passionately, full use of their blood behind every rock of their hips, move of their lips, scratch of their nails. She was mesmerized by him as he moved above her; even as the pleasure hazed coherent thought she was entranced by his powerful muscles as he pushed deeper, perspiration beading gracefully down his ivory skin. She had never known it could be like this, and she relinquished herself to his assault while she clawed at his back, beckoning him harder, faster, and he responded to her every plea with fervor. She loved him, she honestly, truly, loved him.

What remained of his control was slipping from his grasp. His body was so sensitive it felt like he was going numb. It was preparing for something, and it was something he wanted with such ardor it hurt. He couldn't concentrate, focused only on her mewls and cries of bliss when he hit particular spots that made her toes curl, dedicated solely on the beautiful agony that sent his every muscle into spasms when their hips made contact. He could feel now familiar contractions coming on, and grit his teeth in the blind desire to have her join him in climax.

Her legs wound behind him urgently, forcing him deeper still, and everything shattered at once. Her wail of release would have surely woken the entire academy, but it never left her mouth. Instead she sunk her fangs deep into his throat, her mind filled with the taste of his blood and the ecstasy of orgasm. With a hoarse cry his control broke, pain and pleasure mixed in an inescapable force that sent him over the edge and filled her willing body.

She moaned contently at the wet heat that flowed into her, meekly lapping up the remnants of his blood as her marks closed, and she shuddered in the aftershocks of her strongest climax yet. He collapsed on top of her, their glistening skin rubbing frictionlessly together as he rested his head on her heaving chest while they both tried to catch their breath. His weight was nothing to her strength, and she quite enjoyed the feel of him resting on her breasts. She smiled down on him when he looked up lovingly, and he gingerly wiped some of her sweaty hair off her forehead.

"**Please tell me it was as intense for you as it was for me."**

She laughed, a bright sound that warmed his heart as she stroked his wet silver hair. _**"No, it was much, much more. That was amazing, Tsukune."**_

A proud, loving grin formed on his face, and she gasped when she felt his hardness move within her. She returned the grin sincerely, and moaned as her hypersensitive nerves were rubbed when he moved up to kiss her again.

Never underestimate vampire stamina, or the desire of a man that had waited years for this dream to come true.

Under the velvet moon shining in the window, the two vampires consummated their love.

…

**Author's Notes:** I thought of breaking this chapter up, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. I'm sorry for the delay, I was, and am, sick as a dog right now, so I'm hoping the medication starts working or I'm screwed. I truly hope everyone reviews for this chapter, for obvious reasons. I hope I made up for the wait with the quality of this chapter.

Once again, I hope everyone enjoyed the chapter, and continues to enjoy this story. If you like it, please tell me about it! It makes everything so much easier, LOL. Well, I'm off to take a cold shower, so I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.


	7. To Seal A Vampire

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Rosario+Vampire, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story. Simple enough, ne? Just don't copy from this story and we're all good!

**Should I keep putting up these warnings? Just letting you know, there will be lemon again this chapter.**

.

**To Seal A Vampire**

**.**

Minutes seemed like hours and hours seemed like minutes. Time lost all meaning to the two vampires consumed wholly with each other. There was no concept of individuality among them, that night they were one and only one. Fanged teeth smiled and nipped at flesh sweaty and sensitive, and bruised lips pressed together lovingly as their pale bodies met with abandon. Tension that had been building over years was given an outlet, and in its place something else was given life. There was no more need to resist each other, and instead the tension of a love unrequited became the mutual desire of two lovers, an indomitable flame that never receded.

Love.

Tsukune Aono lay beside his lover on her small bed, gently caressing his thumb over her cheek as she held his hand to the side of her face. They lay under the soft red silk of her sheets on their sides, barely a foot apart, basking in the post-coital glow for the moment before the pull became too much for them again. Her long silver hair was splayed everywhere around them, damp from exertion and shining in the meager light of the room, which only drew attention to the soft ruby eyes gazing contently at her mate.

The word still rolled around in Moka Akashiya's mind. _Mate_. Something she had never expected to find, a word she had never given much thought to because of that. Her other self dreamed of finding a love worthy of the title, but she had thought she knew better, and scoffed at the concept. Oh how she had been proven so, so wrong. Looking into the eyes so like her own, she knew she had found him. Her one and only, her love, the man who could somehow convey all of his feelings just as strongly with a touch of his thumb as he could in the throes of carnal passion.

Under the bright crimson gaze of his love, Tsukune had to smile adoringly. She simply didn't know how beautiful she was to him. Alabaster skin glimmering with perspiration and contentment framed strong arms hiding untold power, leading to a feminine hand capable of crushing bone like paper instead held tenderly over his on her deific face. The swell of her chest rose and fell with every one of her soft breaths, covered attractively with dark red silk, and her warm smile made his blood burn. Eventually the temptation became too much for him and he leaned forward, gently catching her lips with his once more. She chuckled sensuously as she wrapped her arms around him, readily accepting his touch.

Sadly, this was all interrupted by a blaring noise from her nightstand.

The vampiress growled at the unwelcome disturbance and reached back, impatiently smashing the source of the sound so she could return to her lover. The force behind the irritated strike reduced the stand to kindling, and this time it was Tsukune who chuckled as he was rolled to his back, his goddess veiling his body with hers.

"**What was that?"** he asked with half-interest as he kissed his way down her neck, and though Moka moaned at the wonderful treatment to her sensitive skin, she still sighed.

"_**My alarm clock."**_

He stilled, pulling away to look up at her with an incredulous smirk. **"Your alarm clock."**

"_**My alarm clock,"**_ she confirmed with a matching smirk, and giggled when his smile stretched and he laughed before pulling her face down to meet his for another kiss. Resting her forehead against his, they couldn't keep the oversized, impossibly smug smiles down at what that meant. The proximity soon led to playful pecks, which predictably lengthened, but eventually she pulled away, however grudgingly it may be. _**"We really shouldn't…"**_ She moaned when he set yet another hickey against her neck, and bit her lower lip for more resolve. _**"Tsukune…oh damn…that's not fair…" **_She could feel his grin as he kissed under her jaw, forcing her to reveal more of her porcelain neck to his care, and she arched into him wantonly.

"**All's fair in love and war."**

Her lips twitched upwards in amusement. _**"Oh really?"**_ Calling on her otherworldly strength, she pinned his arms over his head, holding him captive under her before she dove down to ravage his neck. Hard kisses had him holding himself back from reversing their positions, but his scent had a very unsurprising effect on her and he gasped brokenly when her sharp fangs dug deep into his throat. After the night they had, he would never be able to feel her bites the same way again, and in a good way.

Unable to contain himself any longer, he broke free of her hold with a flare of demonic energy, and she recognized his look right away. _**"Tsukune, wait!"**_ Before she had any more time to protest he bit into her flesh hungrily. Her eyes rolled back in her head, all the while cursing herself for not being able to hold back from tasting his delectable blood. His bites had somehow managed to become even more potent, and she shook uncontrollably as another miniature orgasm rippled through nerves worn raw. _**Oh not fairrr…**_**so**_** not faaair…**_ She crumpled against him, loving every second he spent licking her skin afterwards.

"**You were saying?"**

She punched his shoulder feebly, her vaunted strength still savoring the pleasure coursing through her. _**"We have an hour and a half until school starts. We need a bath, and **_**you**_** need to get back to your room before anyone sees."**_

He groaned as he hugged her to him and leaned his head into her breasts, and she smiled while she stroked his sweaty hair. She had absolutely no problem with this arrangement. **"We **_**could**_** just skip…"**

"_**They'd come looking for us,"**_ she responded simply, and he sighed, unnoticing of the shiver that crawled through her when his breath washed down her chest.

"**I know, I know. Can't blame me for trying, can you?"**

She laughed cheerfully, unafraid to do so in the quiet alone with him. _**"You make it sound like this will be the last time we do this. We have all of eternity, lover."**_ A gasp broke from her lips when she felt him harden against her and his eyes darkened lustfully, a piercing gaze that burned through his bangs and almost made her gulp.

"**Say that again,"** he ordered hotly.

A warm grin stayed in place as she ran a hand down the side of his face, her eyes soft with understanding. _**"I'll always love you, Tsukune; my vampire, my lover, my mate. We have all of eternity before us, there's no need to rush."**_

Suddenly she had been jerked forward into a frenzied kiss that took her breath away, and when he finally pulled away her vision swam. When she was able to focus in on his face again he gave her one last chaste kiss before releasing her. The last descriptive had been a new one to him, but his blood had responded more to that one word than his once-human self had to the one before it. The jolt it sent to his system was more than enough to disregard any tiredness he might have been feeling, but now time was against them.

"**I should probably get going then."** It was clear in his voice it was the last thing he wanted to do.

Shaking her head, she moved off the bed and stretched, gracing his eyes with her full uncovered beauty as she sighed happily, satiated in every sense. For the moment. Maneuvering around the pillows that had been knocked askew, the shards of wood and electronics that marked the death of her nightstand, and the table still set with their meal from last night, Moka ultimately found her choker dangling precariously on the shade of one of her lamps. She chuckled as she strapped it into place, and soon found her rosary just off to the side of the bed, buried under one of the halves of what used to be her blouse. Already feeling the weakening effects of holding the holy cross, she moved over to where he sat watching her and kissed him tenderly. He held the side of her face lovingly as she stepped away, and she merely smiled.

"_**I never said you had to leave right away. I said **_**we**_** needed a bath, not just me. An hour and a half is plenty of time…don't you agree? I'll see you later, lover."**_

What she was implying dawned on him just as she snapped the Rosario back into place, and as she closed her eyes he watched her skin darken and pink bleed into her hair. Soon enough Moka's outer personality had been totally restored, and she _'eeped'_ in surprise when she opened her emerald eyes and noticed she was naked. She moved to cover herself, but Tsukune stopped her instinctively, and she blushed again when she saw he was just as nude as she was.

"**You remember what happened, right?"** He couldn't stand the thought of her waking up and not knowing they had made long, passionate love the entire night prior.

She nodded timidly, not trusting her voice. If she hadn't made that agreement with her inner self _she_ would have been the one to rip off his shirt last night, and feeling the pleasant soreness of her body made her wish for that all the more. That wasn't even taking into account their activities the moments before her reawakening, and thanks to those her body was already telling her what it wanted to do, and she was in no condition to fight it. The whole reason she had agreed in the first place was that she was nowhere as confident as her inner self, but that became moot when his hand reached under her chin and suddenly she was kissing him.

Eyes open wide in shock soon surrendered to the brilliant warmth flooding through her, and she fell into him, not the least bit mindful to their state of undress anymore. She wanted him so badly, just as badly as the vampire within, but she had had to let go the second their desire peaked the night before. Now she was under no such obligations. There was the time restriction to think about however, so with that in mind she stopped before they got too far along, as much as her body protested the action. Tsukune seemed to share her sentiments, because he groaned lowly when she left his hold.

"I really should start the bath." Sure enough, he groaned again, and she giggled as her cheeks glowed endearingly. "Care to join me?"

Her lover went rigid, in more ways than one, she noticed with a rather lustful sense of mirth. His smoldering gaze helped her remember just how much he loved her, both her and the vampire held captive within her rosary. **"Please say you meant that literally."**

She giggled again, and she had to admit she had never thought Tsukune could be so open with their physical relationship once it actually started. Whatever confidence her inner self had given him the night before had certainly worked in his favor, and it was a welcome change. Hours of mind-blowing lovemaking could do that to anyone, she supposed. She chose to answer by extending her hand and smiling in a none-too-innocent way, which had an equal smile growing on him as he took her hand.

They chuckled as they made their way through the mess they had made of her room, and Tsukune almost froze when he noticed her bathroom was designed much differently than his. Where his had the practical bearing of a typical Japanese spa, hers was regal in every sense of the word. She kept every marble tile immaculate, and a large, claw-footed ivory bathtub took up most of the area instead of wasting it on something a vampire would find useless, such as a shower area. It was more than large enough to fit two people comfortably, and he couldn't help but follow the path of her body with his eyes as she leaned down to start the water.

His goddess was positively breathtaking, more than any material object in the entire world could ever hope to be in any amount of splendor. He knew he should be tired, he had every right to be, but trailing his gaze down her smooth back leading to her round, impossibly perfect posterior, his body decided right then there was no way in hell it was going to allow itself to feel anything of the sort. She gasped breathily when his arms wound around her from behind as she straightened, and her heart sped when she felt the entirety of him pressed against her.

Kissing the side of her neck affectionately, he tasted the dried sweat and pure pheromones soaked into her every pore from a night of uninhibited passion. She smelled irresistible, bathed so heavily in the carnal perfume and a scent he recognized instinctively as his own. While undeniably arousing, he knew the bath was needed too. Any Youkai with any level of enhanced senses would be able to smell them on each other a mile away, and while a certain part of him would have taken great delight in seeing the looks on the other males' faces, the other, more dominant parts of him would be embarrassed beyond belief.

"Tsukune…" she moaned lightly as his hands gently massaged over her firm abdomen, tracing invisible designs over her peachy flesh. The urge to whimper had never been so powerful before. He was so tender with her, just as she knew he had been with her vampire self as well, before they had been pushed too far that is. He didn't need to say how much he loved her, it was shown in every adoring touch he gave her body. She chewed her lower lip between her teeth as his reverent touches glided lower, softly ghosting over her thighs before trailing back up to her breasts. The moan he earned when he softly skimmed her generous assets surprised even her, and she pushed back into him unabashedly, rewarded with a moan of her own when his arousal was pressed into the cleft of her backside.

"**Moka…"**

Hearing her name whispered by his powerful voice made her sex throb, and she absentmindedly cursed that they had so little time together. Her other self was fast asleep, dreaming peaceful dreams of the nights to come, while she was left to go to school with the weary body. Life was so unfair sometimes, but the silver lining was right behind her. Considering his newfound hair color, it was quite literal. She smiled ruefully before turning around and wrapping her arms around his neck, pulling herself up for a hot kiss that meshed their slick bodies together, allowing her to feel his hard girth against her stomach. They may not have a lot of time, but she swore each and every second would be well remembered. If she was going to be tired anyway, she figured she might as well make it worth it.

He blinked dazedly when she removed her arms from around him, and smiled in the same way. **"I've never been so glad for an unhealthily early alarm in my life."**

She grinned back as she swept her hands through her thick candy-pink mane, that in itself the explanation. "Have you ever tried washing this much hair?"

Gently pulling her to him, he brushed his fingers through the strands she was holding, teasing them under his nose with a heavy inhalation that had her eyes fluttering. **"No, but I could get used to."**

She almost swooned.

Willing her legs to keep her upright, she reached for the jar of herbal tablets kept on a nearby shelf shakily. With a few dissolved for safe measure, she sunk into the gloriously hot water, and her sigh of happiness didn't go unnoticed. Looking over at her lover, she nearly grinned just as evilly as her other self would have at his painfully aroused state. Leaning up, she motioned for him to slide in behind her, and he took the invitation eagerly, releasing an equally satisfied sigh when the hot water eased the soreness from his muscles. Feeling her slick body rubbing against him was absolute heaven, and he pulled her closer. When her back was flush against his chest, he leaned back into the curve of the tub and rested his head against the edge, content in the warmth of his vampiress and the beauty of the moment. It was just perfect, and he couldn't resist closing his eyes for just a second to imprint it into his psyche.

"**I love you, Moka,"** he repeated softly once more, and she smiled as she laid her head back on his strong chest. He would never tire of saying those words, nor would she tire of hearing them.

"I love you too, Tsukune."

With just a small movement upwards, she was able to maneuver his length between her thighs, and she heard him suck in a sharp breath behind her. The wetness amid her legs wasn't _all_ from the water they were in, and he seemed to know that. Judging from the way his arms tightened under her breasts, he wanted what she wanted just as much as she did. In a way, she was glad her unsealed self had lost their maidenhead, so she was allowed to revel in the full experience of him penetrating her without worrying about pain. There was no desire for foreplay; she had hours upon hours of memories, in a frustrated state of mind as it was, to make up for that. She wanted _him_. _Now._ As she slowly drew him into her, her eyes squeezed tight in bliss, feeling her inner walls stretch to accommodate her lover. She had wanted this ever since she had reawakened, and it was just as her faint memories had told her. Nerves overactive from use sparked to life yet again, and her fingers tightened around the base of the tub. When he was at last embedded in her fully and she was seated on his hips, she drew in a shuddering breath.

She had never felt so full in her life. It was an amazing feeling, like she had eaten and would never be hungry again. Her whole body was alight in wonder, and she knew now why her inner self was so reluctant to let him go. Rocking her hips, her world lost color as the water sloshed around them. Pleasure burned through her in white-hot waves, and she moaned appreciatively. Though technically a virgin, she had an entire night of memories to work from, and she quickly established a rhythm as best she could, desperately wanting to feel that incredible release _herself._

Tsukune groaned huskily. It truly felt like he had two different lovers; each was different and yet the same. They shared the same body, but it felt like a completely separate person, and they each had a style uniquely their own. 'Inner' Moka was sure and confident in everything she did, even lovemaking; 'Outer' Moka was shy but determined, and God help him he was losing his mind. From his position he could do nothing but urge her on with his hands on her hips, and she took the encouragement wholeheartedly, grinding herself back into him with renewed vigor. He hissed through clenched teeth as the sensation bolted through him. Slick with water, their bodies rubbed together effortlessly, and she braced her hands on his legs to gain leverage as hers slid easily on the floor of the tub. _He_ could do nothing however, and she was torturing his body so beautifully he didn't know whether to beg her to stop or beg her for more. Actually, he did. He wanted more, so very much _more_.

It was better than she could have ever expected, better than all her other self's memories could have ever conveyed. She felt like she was burning from the inside out, like all of her nerves were attuned to one source, and they fired in sequence with every roll of her toned stomach. She loved the feel of his hands gripping her, pushing her deeper, harder, and it was all she could do to keep herself quiet. She could feel his every breath, each beat of his heart, tense of his muscles. This was what she had sought, the oneness that echoed so deeply inside her she didn't know where she began and he ended.

Her pleasure-filled haze was broken when he took control and unexpectedly pushed her forward. She had no need to fear, because even though she was off-balance, _he_ wasn't, and he caught her easily in one hand as his other steadied them on the edge. She whined when he slid out of her, but then he carefully rolled her out of his grip so she could lay on the curve of the other end, and her desire spiked when she realized that now they could see each other fully. She could see his compact, powerful muscles drip water through their contours as he leaned over her, watch as his heated gaze drank in her form before him, and she had never felt so beautiful. A shiver of anticipation passed through her as his touch lingered down the creamy flesh of her thighs, and he didn't disappoint. Pulling her legs to his shoulders, he sheathed himself again in one smooth stroke. She cried out at the depth he achieved so easily, but it went unheard to the world as he devoured her lips, and the pace he set both quenched and grew the desire boiling inside them.

Water splashed onto the tiles as their bodies joined harshly, and Moka hummed joyfully at the newfound intensity to their intimacy. Bidden by an unknown desire, she ran her hands through his hair, peering straight into his eyes as they made love. She almost gasped when his wet hair obliged willingly, folding behind his ears and smoothing down his head. She had only ever known him with the shaggy, messy hairstyle he held so naturally, but when it was wet and manageable he looked positively astounding. His whole face was revealed to her, and the luminous glow of his wet silver hair and bright ruby eyes made that even more exceptional. This was all blasted from her mind when he hit a particular spot harder than normal, and she threw her head back and moaned loudly. She had never loved her flexibility more than in that moment.

He brushed her abundant hair over her forehead soothingly, loving every twist of her expression when their hips met. Her arms were clasped behind his neck, seeking some sort of foundation as her world shook. She was unquestionably erotic, but like everything else it was of her own distinct flavor. As much as she and the vampire within were the same person, he both noticed, and loved, their differences. Her breathy moans made his every effort harder, which in turn spurned stronger sounds, and he knew he wouldn't be able to hold out. It was too much; the beautiful atmosphere, the sound of the turbulent waves, her absolutely amazing moans, the shocks of pleasure more powerful than even the shocks of pain from fresh water; he was simply done for. When her legs slipped from his shoulders to lock behind his waist, it signaled the beginning of the end.

"Tsukune…Tsukune…!"

Hearing his name said like that was the last straw. **"Moka!"**

The onset of nirvana was nothing short of explosive, and in desperation she pushed herself underwater. He heard her scream even then, and he quickly joined her both to cover his own and to meet her lips, frantic for more contact. When they broke the surface it was done leisurely, contented at last. She drew him to her for another kiss, and he was more than happy to oblige. Pulling apart, he shifted to his back again, and she simply followed to lie on his chest, flattening her breasts against him.

"Suddenly my alarm doesn't seem early enough," she joked with a warm smile, and he laughed as he tightened his grip around her.

"**Like a certain someone I know said: we have all of eternity before us, there's no need to rush."**

She chuckled, and for some reason couldn't help but wonder what would happen when it was Kurumu's turn. She was a _succubus_ after all. Combine that with vampire stamina, and the outcome was definitely an unknown. She smiled despite herself. Something told her she would have teasing material for the rest of her known life. "Who said getting clean isn't as fun as getting dirty?"

He howled with laughter and kissed her forehead, easing his fingers through the wet strands of pink plastered to her head. **"We should probably start if we don't want to be late, ne?"**

A sad nod was his answer, but she kissed him regardless, savoring the act before they had to go back to the outside world. Motioning to the shampoo and conditioner on the shelf off to the side, their hands started another trek.

It was a wonder they ever made it out of the bathroom. Neither of them had ever known how different it could feel to have someone else's hands caress over their scalp, and Moka had nearly turned into a puddle of happy goo when her lover's gentle fingers washed her. The way he traversed her back lovingly had eased any and all tension from her tired muscles, and she succumbed to temptation more than once over the course of their cleaning. Tsukune had had much the same reaction, and when she started tracing his scars he shivered. Though in most scars nerves were supposed to be deadened, his were the exact opposite, more often than not having been healed by vampire blood. Nerves that should have died had instead been brought back to life with supernatural strength, and even when the blood wore off the effect remained. In other words, they were some of the most sensitive areas on his body, and Moka found this out very quickly, much to his chagrin.

Time was against them, so as much as they hated to, they had eventually finished. As she dressed in a fresh uniform Tsukune found his boxers and pants, and Moka laughed when they remembered he had no top anymore. Another casualty of vampiric desire was her room in general, but they had no energy to spare for cleaning right then, though they _were_ feeling surprisingly refreshed from the hot bath.

As he moved to leave they still had time to spare, thankfully. Kokoa would get suspicious if they weren't on their route on time.

"I'll see you in a few," she said with a smile, and he returned it with a chuckle.

With one last chaste kiss to his lover, and the cross she wore for safe measure, the half-naked vampire took off towards his dorm with what he hoped was blinding speed.

That was one night he would never forget for the rest of his life.

…

Sure enough, young Kokoa Shuzen was 'just' getting to the fork in the road where they usually met when Tsukune Aono and Moka Akashiya met again, and fortunately she completely missed the undertone to the smiles they gave each other.

"Mornin' Onee-chan!" she greeted in typical Kokoa fashion, and Tsukune sighed at the way she skipped over him entirely. Check that, she did regard him, but it was only to stick out her tongue.

_Maybe I should bite her just to get even…_He smiled at the thought, and the younger vampire misinterpreted the action.

"Wierdo."

Moka intervened hastily when she realized the track her lover's train of thought was running on, and she just barely stopped him from plunging his fangs into her neck as the miniature vampiress strode ahead of him confidently. "Tsukune!"

"**What?"** he whispered back innocently. **"She had it coming!"**

She resisted the urge to tell him just how fitting his words were. "Family's off-limits."

He nearly fell on his face. **"Y-You…you think I was…**_**no!"**_ She grinned; he was just so easy to tease when it came to things like that.

"I know, I know, lighten up."

He grumbled something unintelligible under his breath, and didn't notice when Kokoa turned back to them again. "You must have gotten a really good sleep, Onee-chan. You look even more…_sparkly_ than usual." Moka nearly burst out laughing, and Tsukune simply smiled knowingly.

"We'll go with that, yeah."

When they met up with Kurumu and Mizore outside of the gates, they too noticed the glow coming from the other young woman, and they themselves looked worse for wear comparatively. They looked like they were barely staying awake, and though both older vampires among them felt similar, at least they had a reason for it. Yukari looked just fine though; as for why, they had no idea.

"Wow, don't you look shiny today," Kurumu noticed with what one might call sleep-deprived grumpiness, and Mizore merely nodded her agreement as she wiped her eyes.

"You don't look like you slept too well," the pinkette stated hesitantly, and even Kokoa nodded at that.

"The dorm was even weirder than usual last night. The whole damn thing felt like it was creaking, and it made these bizarre moans that were just plain _creepy_. It wasn't even windy last night!"

Moka and Tsukune turned a deathly shade of white.

"I know!" the succubus agreed vehemently. "I swear some of my witchcraft books were almost knocked from the shelves!"

Their collars were getting rather hot now.

"Yeah, and those breezy noises really started sounding familiar after a while, though I guess anything would when you hear them _that_ often. That wood must be in really bad shape," the Snow Woman added.

"I slept great ~desu!" Yukari announced proudly, completely contradicting everyone else. "Those moans were pretty nice when you got used to them! I just imagined it was Tsukune-san and Moka-san with me; _whew_ ~desu!"

Two new things could be seen from space now, they were sure of it.

"The worse thing is after I finally got to sleep, when I woke up it was _still_ happening! Character only goes so far, I don't want the damn thing falling down on me!" The redhead turned back to look at her sister then. "You're lucky you got to sleep!" Upon closer examination, she backed away carefully. "Whoa, are you okay Onee-chan? You don't look so hot…"

"I'm…I'm fine," she replied as she leaned into Tsukune for support, whom was looking even paler than normal himself. "Must be thirsty, that's all."

"Well then what are you waiting for! Your boy-toy blood-bag's right there!"

Looking at Tsukune apologetically, the scapegoat had no choice but to let his neck be bit. After the night _they_ had, he just barely stifled the sound that he wanted to make when those familiar teeth broke his flesh once more. They always made sure they had more than enough time to recover after each bite, and by doing so they weren't even that thirsty in all honesty. They had been feeding almost nonstop the entire night. Vampires were only able to naturally recover a bare minimum of what their body needed to survive, but something else had taken place between the two vampires last night, and their shared blood had never been more literal.

"You're not looking too well either, Tsukune. Come on, at least it'll give me a reason to pass out in class!" Kurumu said jokingly, but they could tell she wasn't all kidding.

He had to go along with the excuse, and Moka almost reached out and stopped him. If what she remembered was indeed true…. She let her hand fall and sighed. Well, the succubus would find out soon enough.

Violet eyes half-lidded with sleep shot open in instant shock when she felt her love-interest's long canines sink into her. There was no way to describe it, she simply went stiff as she took on her true form instinctively. She couldn't shake, couldn't blink, couldn't _breathe_. She could just _feel_, and all she could feel was pleasure; earth-shaking, toe-curling, curse-inducing _pleasure._

Tsukune didn't linger long, but it was more than enough. When he licked her wounds clean she wobbled on her feet, and the others could only take in the celestial drunkenness their friend seemed to be experiencing with dry mouths. Her tail twitched in its languid wags behind her, and her wings were limp at her sides as she gazed into nothingness happily.

"Hehe…oh…_wow_…"

Kokoa eyed the glazed look on her senpai's face critically. "Now what in the unholy levels of hell did you _do?_"

He rubbed the back of his head nervously. "I…bit her?"

"You bloody-well amped-up the pleasure threshold in your fangs, you sex-crazed demon! You really _are_ an incubus! Get yourself under control already!"

Well, he hadn't known he could vary the degree others felt, but thinking back, he had to admit Moka started reacting even more to his bites as the night went on. _Whoops._ If Kurumu had gotten a full dose of _that_… **"Sorry, Kurumu."**

She shook off her daze and jumped into him, which of course pressed her large bosom into him as well. "Don't ever be sorry for that! Sweet merciful God that felt incredible!" He turned a bright red under both her words and her actions, and she nuzzled her head into his chest affectionately. "Mmm, you even _smell_ nice today. Not that you don't smell nice every day, but you smell like strawberries! If you want me that badly I'm yours!"

He nearly choked, and his traitorous body had the gall to react to her words. _Oh great. Maybe what Kokoa-chan said isn't too far off._ He couldn't deny his attraction to her, but he did feel bad for this happening _now_, of all times. His breath hitched when the woman hugging him stiffened suddenly, and she sniffed him with more intent this time.

"In fact…you _never_ smell like this." Jumping off him and pulling his head down to her—which conveniently stuck him right into her cleavage like she usually did—she smelled his hair carefully. Oblivious to his flailing arms, she eventually let him go, and stared him over decisively. "Did you get new shampoo recently?"

He scratched the side of his head in confusion. "**Not that I know of."** A quick look to his side—where Moka was shaking her head vigorously, before slapping her palm to her face—and he realized very quickly that was _not_ the answer he should have given. It was only then that he remembered the reason _why_ he would smell differently. Now Tsukune wasn't one to use profanity very often, but he could only think one thing. _Oh shit._

A miracle occurred, because the loudspeaker system of the school sparked to life. _"Would Tsukune Aono please report to the headmaster's office immediately. That is Tsukune Aono, to the headmaster's office immediately."_

"**W-Well will you look at that! Gotta go!"** And he took off running.

Stalking towards Moka, the blue-haired Ayashi unceremoniously pulled some of the incredible length of the vampire's hair to her, careful not to pull too hard of course. Her eyes narrowed when she put the candy-colored locks under her nose, and Moka looked away with her best 'innocent' pout.

"Mokaaaaa…"

No one else in the group was _that_ stupid, and they knew what the succubus was getting at. Mizore didn't really look like she cared, but Yukari had stars in her eyes. Kokoa looked like she was going into cardiac arrest though.

"What?"

"Don't 'what' me! We Succubae _invented_ that look!"

"What? I can't say 'what' anymore?"

Mizore just popped the sucker from her mouth and calmly proceeded to derail the entire conversation. "I take it he was pretty good?"

There was no stopping the faraway stare the question provoked, and that query answered, Kokoa nearly had an aneurism. "Onee-chan, you didn't!"

She rubbed the back of her head like someone they knew did so often. She hadn't expected to be caught so soon, but she wasn't about to be embarrassed concerning something that felt so good. Besides, the people she was talking to would likely find out what she was talking about soon enough. Might as well rub it in while she had the chance. The look on her sister's face would be priceless, at the very least. "You're right actually, _I_ didn't. Well, not 'til this morning at least."

The young vampire's eyes doubled in size, and even the others looked pretty shocked at that confession. "Y-Y-Y-Y-You mean…_no_…_no_, not possible; _Onee-sama_ wouldn't…. W-Wait, t-those were…_she_ was the one…n-no way…. They were…_hers…?_"

The overwhelmed Kokoa fainted immediately, still mumbling incoherencies.

"That answers why you look so glowy anyways," Kurumu muttered as she rolled her eyes. "So when _did_ you guys go to bed if you got your turn this morning?" Moka turned her head away, whistling innocently. It was the succubus' turn to widen her eyes. "You're kidding."

"Welllll…"

Yukari fainted from blood loss, twitching with the biggest grin they had ever seen on her face as blood continued to trickle from her nose.

"So, he's fair game now, right?" the Snow Woman asked outright, never once losing her aloof demeanor. There was no hiding the red stained on her pale cheeks however, and her eyes seemed glued to the path Tsukune had taken.

The vampire gave an acquiescent shrug. "I have no problem with it. I know where I stand."

Kurumu eventually just sighed and smiled. Succubae were known for their many lovers, of both sexes, even if they only married the one they deemed their 'destined one.' Poor Tsukune had found that out in a rather untimely manner during their first year school festival. "Well, this'll be interesting."

_**Oh you have no idea,**_ a certain vampiress thought devilishly with one eye cracked open, before she returned to her wonderful dreams of lust and love.

It was going to be nothing if not _interesting_.

…

Tsukune Aono couldn't believe what had just happened. Taking a page from Kokoa's book, he promptly stuffed the experience into the farthest corner of his mind, to deal with at a later time. Or never, preferably. He nearly scared Ruby out of her skin as he burst into the waiting area of the headmaster's office and quickly slammed the door behind him.

"Whoa there, Tsukune-san! The announcement barely went out two minutes ago!" the witch cheered with a happy smile, and he noticed with some relief that she looked like she had gotten some sleep.

"**Y-Yeah, well, I needed an excuse to get out of a conversation anyways."**

Ruby pursed her lips in thought with a finger on the puckered flesh. "Hmm, must have been stories about the state of the girls' dorm right? I've had lots of complaints about that today already."

Tsukune paled again. Had they really been _that_ rough with each other? Thinking back, he had to admit that at certain times, yes, yes they had. **"You don't look too tired; do you think they're just exaggerating?"**

She laughed lightly. "Oh no, I live on the top floor and _I_ was feeling it. I just imagined it was you and I fell right asleep! Talk about sweet dreams!"

He lit up brightly at the assistant's total disregard for too much information. _What is it with witches and…argh!_ The fact that it really _was_ him only made it worse. They were going to have to be much more careful. **"S-So, what is it the headmaster wanted me for?"**

The elder witch among their group shook herself free of the trance she seemed to be under, and clapped her hands excitedly. "Your rosary's ready! I thought it'd be a good idea to get it to you before school started, since it's your first day back after everyone watched you wipe Inner Moka all over Paradise! Funny thing is most of them _still_ haven't figured out who she is."

_Oh thank God!_ The young man thought gratefully. That was the _last_ thing he needed. **"So he's expecting me?"**

"**Indeed I am, Tsukune-kun,"** a voice greeted amicably as a hand put itself on his shoulder from behind. The loud _crack_ of metal snapping went unheard through Tsukune's terrified yelp as he nearly hit his head on the roof, and the Exorcist looked at him curiously. **"Jumpy today, are we?"**

The young vampire clutched his racing heart as he glared at the headmaster, who had managed yet again to appear from somewhere with the sole intent of scaring the hell out of him. **"Apparently."**

He chuckled as he moved to open the imposing door to his creepy abode. **"Well then, please come into my office. We should be finished by the time homeroom begins."**

With one last glare, Tsukune nodded and entered, unnoticing of Ruby's inquisitive glance at the Exorcist. The cloaked man simply nodded before setting the object in his hand in hers and closing the door behind him.

The witch looked down to her hand, where a simple, broken Rosario rested.

_Tsukune-san…you really are…_

…

"**Okay, so how does this work?"** the former human asked bluntly as he tried not to be too intimidated by the imposing office.

The Exorcist opened one of the drawers of his desk and pulled out a gleaming silver necklace, intricately designed with elaborate oval links. In each holy ellipse a tiny silver cross had been painstakingly crafted, and in the center of the string rested a relatively small silver cross. Even it was a work of art, with archaic symbols carved into the blessed metal around the edges and pronounced in black. Superimposed in the interior was yet another cross, this one made by four meeting crystals similar to a star, and they in turn pointed to the heart of the original cross as well as their own, where a black gem rested.

It was without question the most beautiful piece of jewelry he had ever laid eyes on.

"**W-Wow…is that mine?"** he whispered in awe.

The headmaster looked at him with those strange eyes of his and still managed to make him feel like an idiot, regardless of his—or anyone else's—inability to tell apart the emotions in them. **"No, I have another vampire I'm sealing after you. Of course it's yours, child."**

He rubbed his neck nervously. **"R-Right, I knew that. Moka's is so much larger I guess I was expecting something different."**

That earned one of the Exorcist's trademarked chuckles. **"Why Tsukune-kun, you make it seem like size matters."**

Tsukune's skin suddenly matched his eyes. _I just can't escape innuendo today, can I!_ Pushing the blood back where it belonged, he cleared his throat. **"So, what do I do? Just put it on?"**

"**First, hold out your hand for me."**

He did as he was told, and a knife flashed from nowhere before he could do anything about it. He hissed as he jerked back his hand, where a cut was already healing. **"What was that for!"**

The school board chairman calmly held out the knife he was holding, dripping with the dark red source of a vampire's power. **"Watch."** Placing the Rosario he was holding in his other hand under the bloody blade, Tsukune watched in fascination as the crystals previously colorless absorbed the liquid greedily. In no time at all the inner cross of prisms had been dyed crimson, and after the headmaster wiped the remnants from the blade and the cross, it was suddenly that much more extravagant.

"**That would be **_**so**_** cool, if it wasn't **_**so**_** creepy."**

Another dark chuckle sounded. **"It's necessary for someone in your…unique situation. **_**Now**_** you will put it on, so I can begin the ceremony."**

Tsukune took the holy necklace from him gingerly. Just in appearance alone it looked powerful, and he didn't even want to _think_ of how much such an incredible item must have cost. Winding the sealing chain behind his neck, the locks snapped into place instantly, and suddenly he was sick to his stomach. Indecipherable designs glowed to life under him, ancient art of a skill shrouded in secrecy, and he wobbled back weakly.

"**I…don't feel too good."**

"**Don't worry; it's normal. Your power isn't used to being restrained anymore, and considering your growth even over the week since you've changed, it doesn't want to be. It will all be over in a second."**

He fell to his knees as the sickly feeling grew the longer the Exorcist chanted, and he could feel his power receding. He had always made it a point never to release more than he thought he had to, but he had never guessed how much he radiated normally was so much compared to what he was feeling now. As the power waned he could feel something else, an undercurrent gradually growing in his blood. It was…cold; no, mystical; no, what _was_ it? There was something else, maybe even some-_things_ else. Weak, but there.

Pulling out the Rosary of Judgment, the headmaster spoke one last prayer in a language he didn't recognize and peacefully pressed it against the new one glowing in the hollow of Tsukune's throat. Bright silver hair returned to warm chocolate brown, and feline eyes the color of blood slowly bled back to a human, gentle hazel. Pale vampiric skin darkened into the tan the young man had once always sported, and soon he was back to what was considered 'normal' in the human realm. Tsukune was left there panting on his hands and knees, trying to get up the strength to stand again.

"That…was harsh…" He had gotten so used to hearing his voice echo in his ears he barely recognized what had once been his normal one. He had to admit it felt nice to hear it again though. At least the sealing hadn't made the night's activities catch up with him, which meant he still had his vampire healing capabilities. It did slightly accentuate the tiredness of his muscles, and for that he was far from grateful.

"**It's to be expected. Looks like it went off without a hitch, so you can return to class now,"** the headmaster said dismissively.

"Wait, can I remove it? Is it like Moka's? You haven't told me anything about this thing, and besides that it looks like something I'd never be able to afford! I mean, don't get me wrong, I'm really thankful, but am I supposed to believe you're just giving this to me?"

The Exorcist looked back over his shoulder at the sealed vampire with a grin that managed to be both amused and dark. **"Now, now, Tsukune-kun, of course I'm not **_**giving**_** it to you. I'll be extracting payment for that little artifact over the remainder of the year. It's always nice having assistants to help me out."**

"Of course it is," Tsukune groaned in resignation. "What about removing it?"

"**Don't worry about that; while not as extreme as young Moka-chan's, I've programmed the rosary to allow you to remove it if circumstances deem it fit. You always do manage to get yourself into unusual situations. That's merely a precaution, as soon as the school year ends it will be under your complete control. As for any others, well, Rosario's generally choose their own keys other than those ingrained into them, so who knows?"**

"Gee, thanks."

He smiled. **"Run along now, I have other things to do. You're going to be late if you stay here too much longer."**

Tsukune's eyes widened. "Oh crap!"

The Dark Lord chuckled as he watched the teenager scramble out of his office like he was on fire, and shook his head in amusement. **"The coming years will be very interesting for the realms, won't they Lilith?"**

The pixie flew over from her perch hidden in the shadows onto his shoulder. "With him? Definitely. I can almost see Lord Shuzen's face now!"

Ruby couldn't help but be disconcerted by the laughter that suddenly rolled out of her master's chambers.

…

The bell was just ringing as Tsukune made it through the doors of his classroom, and he exhaled greatly as he leaned against the closed door. "Whew, safe!"

He was swiftly mobbed by almost the entire class, grateful to have their fellow classmate back.

Moka sighed with a smile. _Only you, Tsukune, only you._ It felt like too long since she had last seen his warm russet orbs gazing at her, but only he would be able to have everything back to normal the second he was sealed, even though they _knew_ he was a vampire. Even his epic battle with her was all but forgotten; all they saw was the young man they had been with over almost three full years of school. Tsukune merely smiled one of his face-splitting grins as he rubbed the back of his head, unused to all the attention.

When the class was at last called to order, he smiled over at his friends, and they had to admit the lack of fangs was abnormal to them now. His seal was hidden under his clothes, and they weren't about to ask him in the middle of class. They had half-expected a choker like Moka's, but that might have just been Ruby's wishful thinking.

Still, not long later, nearly the whole class was asleep.

Shizuka Nekonome looked over her class strangely, before shrugging and curling up on her desk. "Meh, catnaps are always nice! Designated nap time!"

Not about to argue with that logic, Youkai Academy had its first class on napping, led by an overqualified cat demon.

…

The infamous Newspaper Club walked away from the school at the end of the day, surprisingly energetic all things considered.

"So Tsukune, are you going to show us your Rosario? I've been dying to see it all day!" Kurumu asked happily as she jumped onto her destined one's back and nuzzled her cheek into his.

Hastily frozen solid, the Snow Woman among them removed the clip-on from Tsukune's back. "Cool off."

All too soon the succubus broke out of her icy prison, and she shook Mizore by the shoulders with mock tears in her eyes. "Hey! You're curious too, why'd you do that!"

The blue-eyed woman simply moved into Tsukune's chest and rested her head against it, calmly sticking her tongue out at the incarnation of lust.

One of their patented ridiculous brawls started predictably.

Tsukune slapped his hand over his face. _Well, I needed a reason to see if I could still use their powers anyway. Good a time as any._ "Hey! Look over here!"

They responded to the interruption more out of confusion than anything else, but soon they were both rolling on the ground, clutching their sides and laughing hysterically. Even the normally deadpan Mizore was flushed in joy as she fought off the feathers attacking her skin. Moka had to hold her hands over her mouth lest she laugh too hard, but Yukari was thoroughly enjoying the scene before her.

"Stop! I give, I give!" Kurumu shouted between the gasping breaths she took to laugh harder.

The experiment an overpowering success, Tsukune released them, pleased it had worked so well. New as he was to the world of illusions and magic, he had been worried he would accidentally do something much different than what he wanted. "Well, that worked better than I hoped. I guess we can still train even with me sealed!"

"Oh, I knew you'd be a natural! I knew it!" the bluehead crowed as she jumped onto him again, flattening his face into her bust for the second time that day. Releasing him before she was flash-frozen again, she put her hands on her hips proudly. "Now come on, I want to see the hardware! Training can wait!"

He grinned with a sigh as he shuffled off his tie and undid the top buttons of his shirt, pulling the silver necklace from its hiding place. Kurumu and Yukari instantly preened over how beautiful the item was while Mizore looked on appreciatively from a distance, but Kokoa and Moka turned a very unhealthy shade of white.

"O-Onee-chan," the smaller vampire whispered, "is-isn't that…?"

"Y-Yeah…" her elder sister whispered back shakily. "T-That's even more powerful than mine…t-that's…"

Neither of them could bring themselves to say it, both for different reasons.

Inner Moka looked over him admiringly. _**You really were born for greatness, weren't you?**_

Kurumu and Mizore didn't know just what they would be training, but the fact remained, they couldn't wait to be alone with him.

And blissfully oblivious Tsukune Aono was none the wiser.

A certain succubus was going to change that.

…

**Author's Notes:** Sorry, Outer Moka had to be before anyone else, but did anyone have any doubts? I actually like writing these nineteen to twenty page chapters, so I hope it gives everyone enough to read while I work on the next one. Between an insane schedule and the cough I'm _finally_ getting over, I'm surprised I was able to get it out in…two weeks? Still pretty good I suppose for the length. I hope you all don't mind the wait.

If you enjoyed the chapter, or the story in general, please tell me about it! It makes it so much easier knowing I'm writing a story people are enjoying and continuing to read.

Hope you enjoyed the chapter!


	8. To Desire A Vampire

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Rosario+Vampire, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story. Simple enough, ne? Just don't copy from this story and we're all good!

.

**To Desire A Vampire**

**.**

Something was wrong.

That was the only explanation he could come up with, the only vague idea he had to clarify just why everything was going as it was. As for a more detailed concept within that original idea however, he was at a loss. All Tsukune Aono knew was that training with Kurumu and Mizore was going to suck, and for almost the same reason training had sucked with Moka's inner self. So, as he grit his teeth and tried to find the magic inside him, he decided the training sucked. Why? Because _he_ sucked.

"It's okay, Tsukune, just try again," Kurumu Kurono crooned softly, trying to alleviate the frustration she could see was growing in her destined one.

Aforementioned male glared at her as strongly as he could, and she could feel the illusion take hold. Roots shot up from the ground and wrapped around her wrists, with the intent of pinning her in place, but she simply sighed. With a flex of her arms she was free, and Tsukune fell back to the ground, panting heavily.

"_Okay?_ We've been at this for over two hours! Why can't I get it to work!" He had thought it would be easy; the illusions had come naturally when he was unsealed, and he knew for a fact he had caused Moka _pain_ with his very first one. With the rosary in place he could barely make Kurumu feel the abrasive texture of the roots he conjured, and she was always able to break free of them with hardly any effort on her part.

"You _are_ getting it to work, Tsukune, you are," she encouraged hastily as she knelt down beside him and wiped his forehead. "Illusions aren't an easy thing to create if you aren't a certain kind of monster in the first place, and you're doing it with a holy item draining your power! Maybe it's simply harder for you to cause pain and all that 'cause you're just not wired that way. You still managed to make one strong enough for Mizore and I to feel the feathers! Besides, you're right, it's been hours, maybe you're just running low on my blood."

He shook his head. "I don't know about that. Ever since I got the rosary I haven't felt as in touch with that ability as I did before. I feel _something_, but I don't know what it is anymore. It feels like I'm trying to catch falling water with my bare hands; it's _there_, but whenever I grasp it it just slips through my fingers! It just…felt so…_natural_ before. Now I don't know _what_ it feels like." He sighed dejectedly. He hadn't felt so useless since his first year.

The succubus pouted at the depression she could see on the normally cheerful vampire. "Let's call it a day. You're tired, and definitely not thinking straight. You'll do better with a full night's sleep in you, I'm sure of it!"

Tsukune had to smile at Kurumu's never-failing optimism, and sat up with a small groan at the pull on his weary muscles. "Maybe you're right."

"I know I'm right!" she responded resolutely, and he smiled wider.

With a heavy exhalation he laid back down on the ground, staring up at the slightly cloudy sky as he pillowed his head in his hands. Kurumu followed suit, but she preferred to shuffle into his side, and his cheeks burned as she rested her head on his chest to look up with him. It didn't even feel wrong like he had thought it would, and _that_ bothered him more than anything.

"You are right," he admitted softly. "Maybe I'm just expecting to be able to do everything now. I mean, I never would have thought in a thousand years that I'd be able to use magic, heck, I never even thought magic was real before I came here! Now I'm a _vampire_, and not even a regular one either. I shouldn't really be complaining, since I shouldn't even be able to do it at all!"

Kurumu laughed; this was the Tsukune she knew and loved. "That's one way of looking at it."

A long silence settled in, but there was a tension there that didn't allow it to be fully enjoyed. It wasn't awkward, nor was it exactly primal, it was just something unspoken that had yet to be fully explained between them. Finally, Tsukune got up the nerve to talk about it. "Kurumu…you know…did…" He yelped when the bluette poked him in the ribs unexpectedly, cutting off whatever he might have wanted to say.

"I _do_ know. Turns out vampires aren't that different from succubae when it comes to some things."

He turned his head over to look at her, where soft topaz met bright amethyst. Her smirk was entirely too enticing, and so close to her he could smell her even better than usual. He shook those thoughts off quickly; it was neither the time nor the place for them. "So…it wouldn't feel…_wrong_ to you, in any way? I'm still trying to get over the whole shock of it, but I'd be lying if I said this didn't feel nice."

She giggled. "How could it ever feel wrong? It just means I'm getting some extra lovers in one big 'destined one' package!"

The urge to sputter just about overcame him, but eventually he just sighed and allowed himself to laugh. "Sometimes I forget what our 'normal' is! I guess that would explain your mother at least."

Kurumu flushed scarlet at being reminded of that. "H-Hey, it could have been worse, right? At least she didn't try to kill you with frozen tea!"

"True," he laughed, "Tsurara-san is a very interesting person. When it all comes down to it though, she was just worried about Mizore. She scares the daylights out of me sometimes, but she's a good parent. You don't have to be monster or human to understand that."

The succubus at his side smiled softly and nestled into him more. Tsukune was simply the nicest person she knew, and even attempts on his life could be laughed off. If he knew the reasoning behind anything he could go from an enemy to an ally in no time flat, even with Tsurara Shirayuki's…_eccentric_ personality. "You're going to make a good father one day, you know that?"

Tsukune's ears glowed brightly, even though he really appreciated the compliment. "T-Thank you."

While there was plenty she could elaborate on since the topic was so loaded, she let him go mercifully. "Hey, tomorrow's the weekend, do you wanna do something? I haven't been to Mononoke Arcade in a long time! We could even try to find some books on illusions, heck if I know if I'm teachin' 'em properly!"

He smiled, thankful she was being so understanding…for once. "Sure, I've been meaning to get some new clothes for a while too." That, and he needed to replace the shirt that had been an unforeseen casualty in the release of over two years worth of pent-up lust. With his already meager supply of clothing, that one shirt was a lot of his wardrobe.

For him, it was perfect. He really did love her, but there was still some nagging doubt at the back of his mind wondering if everything was really alright. Slowly, if he could go slowly, maybe the worries would quiet themselves. He had to admit it was already a lot more companionable than he thought it would be, considering what they found out this morning. If things kept on going on this track, everything might just work out.

"Are you thirsty? Even if we're done training, you _have_ been using my powers for a pretty long time. I'm surprised it lasted as long as it did come to think of it, I didn't think you took that much this morning," Kurumu stated as her face scrunched up in confusion. _That's _really_ odd actually_, she continued mentally. _From what I've seen he gets less time the longer it has to digest, and he's had all day already. Did he really take that much this morning?_ They had completely forgotten to have him restock beforehand, but that was probably because of his show of prowess after school. For him to be able to make _any_ illusion, even one at all, after two solid hours of use seemed strange.

After a second of thought to evaluate his body, Tsukune couldn't deny he was feeling rather weak. Though it was only around supper time, his body was telling him it was time to rest for the night. Considering he had only had a nap that lasted barely as long as homeroom in the past forty-eight hours, he was pretty tired. Blood would only make that rest all the better.

Nodding his affirmation, Kurumu smiled as she flipped her hair out of the way. Her cheeks flared with color when Tsukune rolled over on top over her, supporting himself with both arms strained as he leaned down to inhale her sweet scent. For her part, Kurumu just shivered under him at the intimate position as her imagination ran a million miles a minute, breathless in excitement. It would seem he had gained some control over his threshold, as the pleasure didn't completely overtake her as it had that morning. This was more of a slow burning fire that eased through every vein like magma, keeping all thought from the pain yet not wracking her body with insane bliss either. It was still almost as bad, and caused her to shudder no less. At least it hadn't triggered her transformation like the others had.

She sighed heavily when he licked the wounds closed, and went limp against the hard ground she was laying on. _That never gets old,_ she thought lazily, and granted him a content grin at the inquisitive look he sent at her. He was always worried he would take too much.

"Do you want me to walk you back to the dorms?" he asked, and she noticed his voice was already showing the strength her blood had returned to him. She tried moving, and was horrified when she realized her legs didn't want to comply with her wishes. In fact, her whole body was still rather tingly. Her muscles protested the movement, and the thought came to mind that she had already offered her blood to him that morning. Maybe twice a day was pushing it if he wasn't _really_ careful with the amount he took. Even Ayashi had limits.

"U-Um…Tsukune…"

"Yeah?"

Her face was positively glowing as she whispered, "…I can't move."

He looked at her in confusion for a little while at that, but then his brain finally connected to his ears and comprehension dawned. He smiled widely at her predicament, though he had the good grace to look apologetic, and she would have hit him had she had the strength. "Okee doke; upsie daisy!"

She squeaked in surprise as vertigo set in when she was unceremoniously picked up like she weighed less than nothing. Her heart swelled with warmth when she realized she was being held like a bride in the strong arms of her love, and suddenly she was thanking every deity she could think of for her previously humiliating situation. She had never noticed how broad his chest was before, but being held against it like she was made her realize how small she was in comparison. The constant, rhythmic motions of his steps set a counterpoint to the beat of his heart, and the heady fragrance of sweat mingled with the strawberries of Moka's shampoo and his own light cologne to lull her into an almost dreamlike state. She all but turned into lovesick goo while she rested her head against him.

Yes, there was no doubt in her mind this was where she belonged. Since she was also one of the other races that accommodated more than one lover even when married—or whatever passed for marriage among them—she was finding the prospect of having to share him less and less disagreeable. If he had any reservations, she could always grab Mizore and show him a few of the 'Black and White Duets' they had made with him in mind specifically. The Snow Woman was a damn good kisser, she wasn't about to deny that.

When they reached her door she almost whined, but she felt good enough to be on her feet again. That by no means made her like it. He seemed equally reluctant to put her down, but he did anyway, and she let him anyway. Something didn't allow her to let their time end like that, and she hugged him as they stood outside her door. It wasn't like her usual overly-amorous suffocations; this one was a simple embrace, melding her small body to his as she laid her head against his hard chest again. Her warmth soaked into him slowly, and he could do nothing but hold her back. Being an adolescent male it was hard to see much else in her characteristic squeezes, but this time he practically felt her emotions seep into him. In that one action he understood more than he had in years.

_How have I never noticed it until now?_ He thought dazedly, but was instantly reprimanded by his own conscience. _No, that's not it…I _did_ know, I just didn't want to admit that I loved her just as much._ The tightness around his heart loosed when he finally confessed that to himself, and he held her closer, burying his nose in her brilliant blue hair, oblivious to her sharp gasp. _I damned my humanity a long time ago, it's time I actually accepted what I am now. If I'm allowed to love them like I want to, I can't keep thinking in the same old state of mind._

Kurumu could feel tears gathering in her eyes, not because of how tightly he was holding her, but because he was finally holding her like she wanted him to. She could feel it, something had changed, and she felt like she had been wrapped in the most welcoming of sanctuary. It was like he was trying to envelop her completely, and in the vastness of his heart she felt nothing but safe.

"I love you, Tsukune. You know that, right?" she whispered softly, and he carefully released her. Standing in front of her, looking down into her moist violet eyes, the last decision was made.

"Aw damn it all to hell!"

That said, he pinned her to her door and fit his hands behind her legs, hoisting her up to his eye level, where he proceeded to smash his lips against hers. The succubus had been waiting so long for this she froze, wide-eyed and stiff. This lasted all of approximately two seconds. When those two seconds had passed however, she moaned gratefully and wound her arms around his neck, desperately pulling him closer, eagerly allowing his tongue entry into her mouth and shamelessly battling it with her own.

Finally, finally, she was kissing her loved one, her destined one. No charms had brought him to her, no illusions held him in place; he was kissing her fully of his own desire. In his passion all else vanished to the wind, and her limbs tingled for an entirely different reason this time. It wasn't a one-sided surprise like she had done after his bout with Moka, this was a mutual endeavor that tore the air from her lungs and flared desire in her core. It wasn't her first—well, with a man it was—but it was definitely first on her very small list. A kiss hard and electric gradually slowed, turning soft and tepid as different emotions made their way therein. Lust simmered into the love underneath, and Kurumu Kurono felt tears slide down her face. He finally understood; her feelings _had_ reached him.

When at last they parted, she wiped her eyes happily, gazing into the gentle ginger orbs of the man who had stolen her heart. He smiled softly, and soothingly caressed away the remnants from her cheeks. "I do know that, Kurumu. I love you too. If you'll have me as I am, both me and Moka, I'm yours."

Her radiant smile dimmed the sun. "I've never wanted anything more."

He chuckled lowly as they leaned forward for another soft kiss, and this time she did whine when she was set on her feet again. If her room wasn't such a mess she might have invited him in, but they were both rather weary—for different reasons—though that was unnoticed at the moment. "I'll see you tomorrow. Let's meet up around lunch so we can eat there too, I don't think I'll be getting up any earlier than that."

She laughed. "Sounds good. I'll see you then." With one last kiss to his cheek, she opened her door and disappeared into her room, already debating what she was going to wear. She was fine with whenever they met up, because she wanted him to have as much sleep as he needed to be at full energy.

If things went her way, he was going to need it.

…

That night yielded an experience that had only happened once before since his transformation. He slept like the dead—or undead, technically—but his dreams were anything but normal. Even in the confines of his mind he felt…restless. Something was happening to him, something was going on in him, but for the life of him he didn't know what. Far from painful, it was like he had an excess of energy he needed to burn, even in the machinations of his subconscious.

The first time it had happened his awareness had felt heightened, like he could hear the very whispers of the wind and the animals under its care. Had he been at all aware of what his body had gone through before, he would have realized it _wasn't_ the first time, but _that_ one he didn't remember at all. It was there nonetheless. This time wherever his mind took him was distorted, malleable, interchangeable with anything and everything. His fingers twitched relentlessly; his arms, his legs, his every muscle flexed of its own will like under the effects of an electric current. The energy was thrumming inside him, begging to get out, but he couldn't move. What he found he _could_ do however, was alter. No matter how often he shifted the surroundings, changed features, created images, the energy remained.

When he did at last feel himself return to some sense of normalcy, the world darkened around him, gradually closing in on the sole inhabitant. For once the darkness didn't scare him, he belonged in it, but he couldn't help but feel like another drop had been added to whatever it was that was growing inside him.

He awoke with a start, staring at a digital readout that told him he had been asleep for a full sixteen hours. His body had forced him to bed early the day before, and even then he had slept until eleven o'clock in the morning the next day. Stretching in place with a wide yawn, Tsukune couldn't believe how good he felt. The odd dream was forgotten rather quickly, as is the way with the wanderings of the subconscious, and he pushed himself out of bed and to the washroom.

Admittedly, he didn't mind not having to go to the shared washrooms of the dorm anymore, and he almost stopped in shock when he noticed the original coloration of his body. He had gotten so used to seeing himself in vampire form, his human one was a surprise to him now. The Rosario stayed ever-present around his neck, and he touched the divine metal of the elaborately designed cross hesitantly. Imagine his astonishment when the silver felt warm to the touch, almost hot from overuse, and he shook off the sting from his fingers as he looked at the object curiously.

_Weird…doesn't feel like it's that hot against my chest. Hmm._

Dismissing the thought as something he didn't need to deal with at the moment, he readied himself for the day with Kurumu. Pulling on his preferred tan cargo pants and one of the many simple white t-shirts he had, he took the risk and tugged the Rosario out from underneath. Instead of the heat from earlier, it was back to the normal temperature of cool silver set against flesh. Now he was really confused, but stranger things had happened in the past, so he just rolled his eyes and grabbed one of the few extra dress shirts he owned. He almost laughed when he saw the one he had taken was the only black one he had, and it matched the gem set in the middle of his rosary nicely. With a shrug the garment was donned, and he set out to the bus stop.

For the second time in the hour he had been awake, he froze in wonder. The baggy socks were a must on her shapely legs, and lead up to the plaid skirt she usually wore while the white, short-sleeved button-up was done up as only she could do it, accentuating her perfectly formed bust in a manner that his blood debating whether to go to his face, or far _lower_. The formal black vest she had on undone over it pronounced everything else wonderfully, and her purse was the small backpack that hung low on her back. For one of the many times over their friendship, Tsukune's image of the succubus being just that was reinforced yet again. She really was sexuality given form when she wanted to be, even as innocent as the attire was originally meant.

When she saw him coming she jumped excitedly, waving her hands over her head in a manner that did nothing to stop the bounce of her chest. He could already feel the blood trickling up to his nose. Fate didn't hate him per se, it just loved to taunt him relentlessly, or so it seemed. He could already see the headlines: 'Vampire Dies of Severe Nosebleed,' 'Bloodsucker Output Exceeds Input.' The list went on and on, and the irony with it. Still, he managed to keep said nosebleed from happening, if only so he could look at the expression of pure joy on her face. Whenever she was happy everyone knew it, because it shone from her face like a beacon. There was no choice but for him to smile back.

"Yahoo~! Good morning, Tsukune!" Instead of pulling his head down to her like was her usual way, this time _she_ jumped into _him_, and he caught her instinctively as he laughed at her excitement. She was just as light as he remembered, and her body in his hold was a pleasantly satisfying feeling. His brain momentarily blew a fuse when she leaned up to peck his lips warmly, and he was only just able to shake himself conscious when she grinned and jumped down from his arms.

"G-Good morning to you too."

She looked him over up and down appraisingly, and smiled even wider when she was done. "We match! How cool is that?"

With a quick glance down, he noticed she was right, at least when it came to the colors of their tops. Grinning one of his familiar grins, he rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "I hope you weren't expecting a track suit."

It took a little while, but when she got the illustration she laughed and clung to his arm happily. "I wouldn't care if you were in your underwear!"

Tsukune coughed hoarsely at the comment. _Why does that not surprise me?_ "W-Well, let's get going. You must be hungry."

…

Mononoke Arcade was the same as he remembered it. He really hadn't had too much occasion to visit it other than the one time with Moka, because he wasn't exactly the richest student there was. He was fine with what he had, though naturally his eyes were drawn to items he wouldn't mind having. The Rosario around his neck looked to be—and more likely was—the most expensive thing he owned, but he was more proud of what it sealed than how it looked. Of course, he was even prouder of the beautiful young woman with her arms entwined around one of his.

It had to be noted that it was as much of a curse as it was a blessing, because the glares he was getting from the male occupants of the mall were less than friendly, to say the least. Since the area was so successful because of the large school so close by, it made sense that a large number of the patrons would be from there as well. It went with logic then that a lot of them knew who he was—who the members of the Newspaper Club were in general after _their_ exploits—and he suspected some of the glares would escalate into something _more_ were any of the other girls with him as well. Moka in particular. Kurumu wasn't without her own large, _large_ fan base though, and given that many were less inclined to keep up their full human disguise while in the confines of the monster-only area, he couldn't help but feel a bit nervous.

A strange thing happened though, because when he thumbed his Rosario for assurance most of them turned away instantly. _Weird._ A gurgling noise caught his attention, and he looked down to see Kurumu looking off to the side in embarrassment, though he was sure some of the sound had been from his own stomach. "I guess our first stop is the food court, eh? I must have forgotten there was a reason we came at lunch time once we got here." Just at the mention his fangs throbbed while he looked down on her, her graceful neck taunting him unremittingly. _Not today,_ he told himself firmly. _She hasn't had enough time to recover from yesterday. I'll have to get by with food for now._

She nodded. "I can't wait to go shopping, but I need some food in me first!"

"Amen to that!"

It was only right in his mind that he pay for their meals, being that this was, for all intents and purposes, a date. Parting with the money was easy under that pretense, and watching her cheerily wolf down her food made it worth it. It had felt strange to have to look around for a merchant that catered to his special requirements, but it hadn't been impossible. The eatery they had eventually found that took pride in their ability to do so had been a bit curious, since his disguise was so perfect, as they put it. When Tsukune had tapped the silver cross they had looked closer inquisitively, and when the manager had caught sight of what they were doing, she too had leaned over to see what was so intriguing.

Tsukune had never seen anyone's eyes go so wide, and they had all but run to fill the order.

"Kurumu, I have to ask, is my rosary…strange?" he queried as he put down his can of tomato juice.

She paused and chewed, pouting thoughtfully before she swallowed. "Hmm, I don't think so. I'm not really big into artifacts or stuff like that so I wouldn't be the person to talk to. Something wrong?"

"Well…I don't know. Have you noticed me getting any weird looks? I'm sure not all of them are because of you, I can recognize _those_ now."

A beaming smile was her response to that, but she did try to think a bit more seriously outside her total absorption of being alone with her destined one. "Maybe they saw your fight with Moka too and're finally making the connection? Who knows if we were the only ones that saw it, or if anyone's told anyone about it either! Or maybe they're just plain jealous!"

He grinned. "Always a possibility with who I've got around me." Her skin reddened as she busied herself with what remained of her meal, and he smiled wider. His body wasn't fully satisfied with just the food, but he calmed himself with the knowledge that he could always seek Ruby out later. She had told him that much. "So where do you want to go first?"

She smiled back. "Does it matter?"

…

It was much like the experience he had had with Moka if he was being completely honest with himself. They would walk around, and whatever caught her eye they would head to. Being a pack mule wasn't his favorite job, but he was happy as long as she was happy. Why she was so excited when they passed a personalized clothing shop he had no idea, but since he had been told to wait outside, he did just that. Having long since discovered that every piece of clothing was 'personal' to women, he didn't even bother trying to wrap his head around it. Out she came with yet another box, but it weighed less than nothing compared to any of the others so he really couldn't complain.

His heart felt lighter with every minute he spent with her, and soon they found themselves in a clothing store that appealed to both men and women. This made things significantly easier for him.

"Hey Tsukune, how does this look?"

Turning to the source of the sound, he nearly fell over backwards when he saw his date standing in the doorway of one of the change rooms, wearing only a bikini that put the one she had wore in Second Year to shame. Flailing wildly to catch all the items he had thrown in shock, he turned away quickly, grateful to have things to cover his groin with.

Even a year of refinement had done worlds for the already attractive succubus, and she was looking more like a woman with every passing day. By itself that was no small claim, seeing as how she could have most of the male population under her spell even _without_ her magic. However it came about, her curves were growing even more prominent, balancing her large breasts effortlessly, and allowing all the more attention to be given to her glowing face. It was hard enough for him to look at her when she was fully clothed, but practically naked was far, far worse.

"L-L-Looks good," he stuttered out weakly, trying, and failing, to keep his eyes from trailing back to her.

Almost the entire store had turned to see what was going on, and the male occupants were in a Kurumu-induced daze, not at all from any of her charms of illusions. At least, not the magical kind.

"Just good?" she whined playfully. "Looks like I'll have to try again." She skipped back into the change room, and he was given a full view of her well-defined backside clad only in material that made underwear look like a parka.

Hoping the action wouldn't get him killed, he walked over to the men's side to see if any of the articles were what he was looking for. While possibly hazardous to his health should he not be there when she came out again, in his mind the situation would be worse if he stayed. To the topic of clothes, he was sorely lacking in everything but the standard t-shirts he could get for cheap, especially with the growth he had been going through since his second year at Youkai Academy. Being sure he could still see all their purchases so far, he rummaged through the circular hanger in front of him. "Hmm, I wonder if any of these would look all right? Graduation'll be coming up at the end of the year…"

"This one would look good on you," the hanger said as a shirt pushed its way off the rack, and he found out _that_ particular clothes-rack sported a pair of very familiar blue eyes.

He nearly jumped at the unexpected shock. Actually, he did.

"GYAH!"

Now the entire store was looking at _him_, and he blushed brightly before pushing the shirt back and hiding the spy he found there. "M-Mizore, what are you _doing_ here!" he whispered as his eyes darted back to the room Kurumu was trying on clothes in.

"Tagging along?" she answered innocently.

He slapped a hand to his face. "I can _see_ that! But wh—you know what…never mind, I know why." Reconciled to his fate, he pulled her out of the stack of merchandise. "Since you're here, would you mind helping me pick out some clothes?" She nodded happily, and inwardly Tsukune sighed. Kurumu wasn't going to be happy about this, but he'd rather do this than risk a similar end to his and Moka's first date here. He'd rather not be attacked by them again if he could help it.

A commotion back where he came from drew their attention away, and he looked back to see a few of the customers—most of the male persuasion—had since swarmed his succubus once she came back out of her stall. Had they just been talking it would have been alright, but many were getting a bit too close for comfort, and he could see the irritation on Kurumu's face. Cold rage rose to life inside him when he saw one of them grab her wrist, and before her fist could make contact with the idiot's face there came a noise that could only be associated with a high-speed projectile. The furious whistle of movement only ended when aforementioned idiot's hand was wrenched away from her and pinned by the cuff of his sleeve to the dressing room door, where the culprit was swiftly revealed to be a razor-sharp icicle. The mistress of illusions looked over in mounting confusion and easily noticed Mizore, but that would have only answered her question had the look on her friend's face not told all too well that she wasn't the one to have done it. She was staring wide-eyed at the man by her side, where Tsukune had taken to resembling Death incarnate as remnants of frost still hung in the air around his outstretched fingers.

"Touch her again and I won't aim for clothing."

Under normal circumstances the members of the black and white duet would have found the expressions currently sported on the assailants' faces pretty funny, but they were too focused on what Tsukune had just done to laugh. The only one that didn't instantly run away was the one with his sleeve pinned to the wall, and he tore his shirt from it before stomping up to the irate vampire.

"This was a brand new shirt, you moron! What are you going to do to compensate!"

For once, Tsukune stared the taller monster dead in the eyes, just barely risking a glance over to where Kurumu was rubbing her wrist. "That was a lady's arm, you moron. What are _you_ going to do to compensate?" he replied icily, and his two friends had to pick their jaws up from the floor. Tsukune rarely, if ever, talked back to people like that, and never _convincingly_.

"Why I'll—!" Fist raised, the other Youkai seemed to have every intention of punching Tsukune's consciousness into a forced hibernation; however, he stopped short suddenly when he looked back into his eyes, and just as suddenly fell over unconscious.

The sealed vampire merely glared down at the man. "That's what I thought you'd do, thank you."

It was obvious situations like the one they had just been through were rather commonplace, as the clerks simply dragged the comatose monster out their doors and into the hands of security. No one even spared him a second glance, which was relieving in its own way.

Quickly walking over to where Kurumu stood, he took her arm in his hands as softly as he could while he examined the spot she had been rubbing before. "Are you alright?"

She stared at him, dumbfounded, for a while longer until she finally computed the question. "Y-Yeah! I…I mean, yes, I'm alright. It was a bigger surprise than anything really! He would've gotten the full course on butt-kicking by yours truly if you hadn't stepped in!" she explained cheerfully, and he smiled, thankful even though she hadn't really needed him to help.

"I actually would have liked to see that."

The succubus laughed and turned to the new arrival, whom was still stoic as ever, though didn't once meet her eyes. "Do I even need to ask why you're here?"

Mizore shrugged, but the guilt was plain on her face. "You could. You already know, but you could."

Though irritation was quickly rising at the bump in her plans, it wasn't as bad as it could have been. Out of their whole group she had more of a friendship with Mizore than any other, even Moka. Moka was a friend, almost a sister, but in some small corner of her mind she was also a goal to strive for, something to defeat. In Mizore she had found a partner, an equal, the other half of her duet. If it was her, she didn't mind her date being interrupted. They had all the time in the world to go on another.

"Fine, fine; whatever. I'm too happy to bother arguing right now!" To prove her point she latched onto Tsukune's arm again. The Snow Woman simply shrugged again before grabbing hold of his unoccupied arm, and the man those arms were attached to could feel the back of his head heat up under the intensified glares of the men present. All things considered, he was more than happy to bear that heat. The smiles on Mizore and Kurumu's faces made that an easy burden to carry.

"Not that I'm not enjoying this, but we did come here for a reason, and I do need to pick up our stuff if we want to go," he pointed out shyly.

"Oh-ho, no you don't," the violet-eyed woman proclaimed playfully. "We still haven't picked out anything for _you!_"

He felt sweat trickle down his neck at the glints that suddenly appeared in his two friends' eyes.

.

V^^^V

.

Behind the sparkle of mischief, one person wondered how long she had waited for something like this.

Mizore Shirayuki was a paradox if ever there was one. She had a tendency of being anywhere, at anytime, but though she was with people—or stalking people to be more specific—she was most always alone. Always alone, yet not far beneath the porcelain skin of her stoic beauty laid a desire for companionship so profound it was impossible to understand. She was a loner by nature, but she didn't want to be. Worse yet, in a race characterized by its elegant women she just had to be different. Though she was no less elegant in any sense of the word, her tastes differed greatly from the norm, as was shown acutely in her clothing, and more so in her personality.

It was funny really. So caught up was she in her own misery she had failed to realize just how many people went through exactly the same thing. When she first saw the school's newspaper she knew she had found a kindred spirit, though at the time she had no way of knowing his loneliness had been quite literal. A human among an entire school different from him in every way, it was only natural she relate, though not in the same sense admittedly.

Imagine her surprise when she met the teen she had become instantly infatuated with, only to see he was much more cheerful than she could have ever suspected. Somehow, though he was able to portray so many of the feelings she herself struggled with, he still had friends. Though he struggled, he wasn't alone. Like she had thought he'd be, like she had hoped he'd be. Perhaps it was in her nature as a Snow Woman that she wanted him for herself, but then he had come to her as if she was a criminal.

Looking back, she had to chuckle at her naivety. She had expected him to know everything about her just because she could see so much of herself in him, yet she couldn't believe him when he tried telling her it was an honest mistake. She didn't know why she had been drawn to the gym teacher, but she had, and in that she had made a mistake as well.

But he came. He had understood her, had known what she wanted so desperately even though she herself had not. Her first encounter with her first real friend involved being saved from death, and when she thought about it she was more amazed every time. He was nothing more than human, and yet he risked injury that could have killed some of the strongest of monsters just for her. If not for Moka, he really would have met his maker that day. She could still feel the warmth of his hand as he reached out and saved her from two deaths, one in the physical sense at the hands of their teacher, and another from the loneliness that had threatened to swallow her whole.

Through him she had come to trust some others as well, and their devotion was shown time and again. In one she found a partner, in another a teacher; in one a rival, and another three as friends. In him she found what she had always wanted: someone to truly love, and someone who loved her unconditionally. He didn't need to say it; she always knew his care for all of them extended beyond simple friendship. Though it was in his character to risk his life for his friends, only he could run full-tilt into enemy territory, cross-dressing at that, and look good doing it. All for her sake, all without ever asking for anything in return.

Deep in his heart she knew he would never be able to choose; he would rather kill himself than hurt any of them. He loved Moka, that was clear to see, but then something would happen that would tip the perilous balance and he would show them something too, something that only made the decision harder. The truth of the matter was, she didn't care. She knew he loved her, and she knew she loved him. As long as she had that, it was enough for her. One night was all she had ever wanted, ever dared hoped for, but as a human, as who he was, he couldn't understand that. As a vampire on the other hand…

Her heart had never felt as warm as when Moka had come to her and explained the situation. She was too kind for her own good, just like Tsukune. Neither of them could stand seeing their friends in pain, and with one small—giant, life-altering—change, their circumstances had taken a turn in the best possible direction. By sacrificing everything he had left of his humanity, the man she loved had opened a door that they could all go through together.

She knew it wasn't going to be that simple; he was Tsukune after all. So instead of pressing the issue she had simply made herself known, became more of a constant in his life than she had been even before, and let him know beyond any of his many, many doubts that she still loved him regardless. It helped that the women he loved were people she held dear to her heart as well. The Succubus was a damn good kisser, she wasn't about to deny that.

It was an amazing feeling, the sheer domesticity of watching him come out in the outfits they picked for him and agreeing or disagreeing with the outcome. The latter was uncommon, but then again they had been around him for years, and there were a _whole_ lot of things they had imagined him in. That it looked just as nice as their fantasies was always nice to see. Of course she'd be lying if she said she didn't get a thrill out of trying on something herself and watching his face redden endearingly. He wasn't a very good judge, since no matter what they came out in he would always say it looked good, but it was nice to hear nonetheless. In a way he _was_ a good judge; they would just use the intensity of his blush as a marker of how 'good' that particular outfit was.

What made everything so perfect was that Tsukune seemed to have thrown off what remained of his hesitancy. That he was out, _alone_, with Kurumu made that all too clear, and it went against who she was to not follow him when she had nothing better to do. Still, she was kind of upset at Kurumu, because since Tsukune had so much to carry she couldn't lean into his side like she wanted to. The upside was neither could the succubus, so she supposed it wasn't too bad.

So, as they walked down the mall corridors, Mizore found herself walking beside her duet partner, leading the heavily-loaded vampire. They had picked out a couple of outfits for Tsukune already—and themselves naturally—and deeming their work done, they had left for other endeavors.

"Seems like your training paid off in only a day," the Snow Woman said in her typical offhanded tone, "though I've never seen anyone faint just from a look."

Kurumu's face turned serious all of a sudden, and she quirked an eyebrow inquisitively. "That's the thing, what he did back there was a _very_, and I mean _very_ high level illusion. It was more of a charm really, but it forced the _body_ to react just like the mind! Yesterday he could barely get me to feel the roots he made after that first tickle attack, and he hasn't even fed from me today!" At that Mizore was suddenly that much paler, and her friend caught on to that right away. "Something wrong?"

"…He hasn't fed from me either."

The bluehead's wide eyes betrayed everything of what was going through her. Grabbing her friend's arm, she turned to Tsukune quickly. "Sorry Tsukune, we have to go to the little girls' room. We'll be back!" And just like that, she had taken off with the violet-haired woman in tow.

Tsukune blinked. "Did I miss something?"

…

Away from prying ears, Kurumu let go of her accomplice, still visibly unnerved. "Let me get this straight: he _hasn't_ fed from you? Like, at all, since the last time?"

She nodded. "He didn't even have time before those guys started harassing you. One second he's fine, the next he just points his hand and…" She formed an icicle in her own to finish the statement. "Not as complex as a kunai, but it gets the job done. He's still lacking a lot of experience."

"Don't you see!" the charm mistress exclaimed. "He's starting to remember our powers! Yesterday he could barely make me feel a thing, but he fed before he left! Maybe we _shouldn't_ train him with our abilities, at least not _now_. What if this whole thing is happening because he _isn't_ using the supernatural powers in our blood, and it's mimicking Moka's! The more he has leftover, the stronger he'll get _permanently!_"

Mizore flipped the icicle through her fingers expertly as she thought about that. "I never thought I'd agree with a hypothesis _you_ came up with, but that does seem like it could happen. He's been feeding a lot more from you though since he changed, with how screwed up our schedule got, so why can he even remember mine?"

A blank stare was all that earned. "Don't you remember he just about sucked you dry that first time? Your power was the one he used first, and there was so much of it I can't even begin to think he used it all up! He had two days of sleep to get used to it, maybe since his body had just changed as it was it just started adding to it with whatever was there!" Seeing the other woman looking up into the air after what was supposed to be a big revelation, she cocked her head to the side. "What are you doing?"

"Just checking if the sky was falling. I thought the day you made sense outside of your 'intuition' was a sign of the apocalypse."

She laughed before she could stop herself, and then quickly went back to how she had been in an attempt to cover the momentary lapse. "Hey! I'm trying to be serious here!"

Her friend smiled apologetically, but couldn't completely erase the mirth from her eyes. "Sorry, couldn't resist. You're right; it would make sense, especially with him just turning. That doesn't explain how far his illusions jumped in just a day. If his body is still getting used to being constantly exposed to our blood then you'd think it would take a bit longer."

With a flaw in logic so plainly exposed, Kurumu's face scrunched up in confusion. "Okay, yeah, that's right. I didn't think about that. Well, I'm no expert on vampires, maybe we should ask Mo—" The words died a quick and painful death as the epiphany hit her, and even Mizore was feeling rather nervous at the look on the succubus' face. "Moka! That's it! Who's the _one_ person he hasn't fed from yet?"

"Well, we already know he's bit us; Ruby-san has been showing all the signs, so he's probably bit her already; he can't with Yukari-chan, because she isn't old enough for him to do it safely without a lot more control; Kokoa-chan would sooner take off his head, so that rules out her from the start, so that just leaves Moka." Her blue eyes widened. "You don't think…?"

"Come on, with his bites, it's pretty obvious he'd take advantage of that over a whole night." The ice maiden's cheeks flared with warmth as her eyes trailed back to where they had come. This was noticed of course, and Kurumu almost smacked her. "Focus! There's time for that later!" She nearly slapped her hands over her mouth at that. "I-I mean…um…"

The violet-haired beauty smirked. "Fine with me if it's fine with you. Now what were you saying?"

She gulped heavily, having essentially been given permission in that regard. It would be nothing short of hypocrisy if she denied the very real fact that the thought sent fresh heat to her womanhood. She had always wondered what it would be like to have the Snow Woman in her bed _with _her destined one. "A-Anyways, if he did feed from Moka, what if he started turning _her_ demonic energy into his own, even _though_ he's a vampire already?"

Mizore shuddered. "It'd definitely explain the jump in his illusions even with him sealed. There's always the fact that he's usually angry whenever he makes the really powerful ones so far, so it could just be that he needs the right circumstances for him to use his full potential," she noted seriously.

The succubus couldn't refute that, but the previous thoughts still made her shiver. "You do know what this means though, right? If he _is_ actually gaining our powers?"

"What?" the other woman deadpanned.

"He's going to _keep_ getting stronger as long as he's drinking our monster blood! Yours was the one he came into contact with first, so what if, I mean just _what if_, he develops a water affinity?" She was practically bouncing up and down by now, absolutely ecstatic at the track her train of thought was running on.

"A _vampire_ with a water affinity? Get real, that'd be…" she stopped short as what her friend was implying struck her all at once. "That'd be…pure…genius. If this is a trait common in vampire Blood Sages, no one would have found out because who sucks the same blood of the same person all the time? Well, other than Moka. And if what she says is true, most of them rely on blood packs now anyway! If he sucked my blood enough to get my powers, what would that do for his weakness?"

Kurumu smiled victoriously. "Exactly! Exactly! What _would_ it do to his weakness to water? Doesn't make sense that someone with a water attribute could be _weak_ to it, now does it? Even with just a sense of it, he'd be way better off!"

"I never thought I'd say this, but you're a genius."

Again, that could only be responded to with a, "Hey!"

Mizore chuckled. "So what's the plan then? Do we tell him about this?"

She shook her head. "We don't even know if it's really happening, so we shouldn't get our hopes up, or his. But just in case it _is_, I say we do this: on days he sucks _my_ blood, he trains with you; and on days he sucks _your_ blood, he trains with me. If he has no reason to use our powers on the days the blood's still fresh, he won't. Give him enough time to digest and sleep on it, and if all goes to plan he should still have it, even stronger, next time he trains with it! Add Moka and Ruby to the list and who knows where he'll end up! We haven't even tested if he's magically talented yet!"

The ice maiden shook her head in amusement. "He's going to be unreal."

"Yup," the succubus said with a large smile. "He's going to be _legendary_."

…

Though Tsukune had no idea what had really sparked the immediate need to be away from him, he was more than grateful for the chance to sit down. Enhanced strength and just about everything else he may have, but he wasn't running on full power anymore either. The thirst was decidedly easier to ignore than it had been before, for which he could only account to the rosary, but his body was beginning to override even that.

_Maybe Moka's habit wasn't just because my blood tastes good,_ he thought succinctly. He wasn't about to endanger his friends' welfare just because his body was feeling a bit weak however. He had been through worse.

When Mizore and Kurumu came back, their smiles were even wider than they had been before, and he just barely held back a look of confusion. He could tell even without much trying that the looks were directed at him, and _because_ of him, if it made any sense. Shrugging off those unsettling thoughts, he rose back to his feet. After all the time they had spent there, his muscles were sore for more than one reason, and it was getting dark outside.

As tired as he was after the day of following her around—which really wasn't that bad, but it still got to his body after a while—the thought of going to Moka's room for another cooking lesson was discarded. Suggesting they find another place to have another meal, the women agreed after their stomachs decided to voice their opinions for them.

It really had been a great day, and there hadn't been any major altercations between his friends either. Usually one brawl per day was to be expected, but today nothing happened at all. He thanked God for small blessings. Even conversation around the table was pleasant, downright _fun_ admittedly, and just like he had hoped, his worries just kept getting smaller.

By the time they made their way back to the bus stop both Kurumu and Mizore were yawning, which didn't make him feel too bad about adding his own. He didn't know which one took more out of him: training, or an entire day of shopping, without feeding to boot. Of course, he wasn't about to let them carry all their items back to their dorms by themselves, so he sucked it up and forced his body to keep moving.

The first one to be dropped off was Kurumu, and with her went a lot of the weight he was carrying. He nearly sighed in relief, and her smile made him forget all about how tired he was.

As hard as it was for her to resist inviting him in, all of them were drained from the day, and the mood just didn't seem right. Though she wanted to invite _both_ of them in, he still had some things to work out with the other half of her duet, and she decided she could wait one more day. If Tsukune made half the progress he had with her with the Snow Woman, it wouldn't be too much longer. There would be hell to pay if she got him before her though.

"Thanks Tsukune, that was really fun. Next time we'll have to make it just the two of us, but this wasn't bad either," she joked lightly, and he chuckled only in time for her to tiptoe up and pull his head down to hers. Mizore didn't seem visibly upset by the action, and Tsukune forgot about everything as he kissed the succubus back. It felt _right_, as hard as it was to understand, and his lips tingled when they pulled away from each other. "Goodnight, Tsukune."

"Goodnight, Kurumu," he replied softly, and with a warm smile she closed her door.

Turning back to Mizore and picking up her meager purchases along with his, she guided him to her room. Unlike the experience at Kurumu's door, when they arrived at hers, she seemed noticeably saddened. The thoughts that instantly went through his head were all bad, and then he realized they had gone through the entire day without once clearing up the tension between _them_. She had come to him even more understandingly than Kurumu, and he had held off because of uncertainty. It was only coincidence that things had worked out how they had, but she had waited patiently, even after so frankly stating her intentions before Moka had clarified things for him. He couldn't even _think_ of how much that had to hurt, especially witnessing his kiss with her best friend moments earlier.

"M-Mizore, I'm so sorry, I never meant to—"

"Do you love me?" she interrupted without ceremony, but it was one of the most honest things he had ever heard. The tears gathering in her eyes made his heart clench, and with their items set down, he pulled her to him. Her cold body temperature felt just right set against him, not too cold and not too hot. Every time he touched her he was less bothered by her naturally cold skin, and he set his chin on top of her head, cradling her into him as completely as he could. Had she been able to see his eyes, she would have seen the confliction inside him, but she didn't need to. It was vibrating in his body itself, like he didn't want to let her go, but knew deep down that he _should_. His next words confirmed it.

"Is it wrong for me to? I need to know, Mizore, I really do. I don't want to lessen the value of your feelings, and I keep thinking that's exactly what I'm doing by trying this. Except…except it just feels _right_; even with Kurumu, it doesn't feel…_wrong_. If it felt wrong at least then I'd have something to stand on, but I can honestly say I love you, and it feels _natural_. I can look at you, and want to kiss you; I can hold you, just like this, and know this is what I want, but there's still this tiny little voice that…that tells me I shouldn't. I love you, I want you, but is that enough for you, knowing you won't be alone?"

She sighed contently, nuzzling comfortably into his warmth. Normally she couldn't stand being heated above a certain state, though her candy was there to compensate for that, but he never bothered her. In fact, he had been bothering her even less ever since he turned, and she had come to crave his paradoxically cold heat even more. He was still very much the young man she had fallen in love with. She knew he was still struggling with the whole concept that had been opened up to him, and while he had been at ease during the day, there hadn't been a whole lot of open displays of affection either. He was clearly still trying to figure out how to approach the situation, but his human thoughts came back no matter how hard he tried to separate himself from them.

Yet, he was still honest enough to say it out loud. His kindness really was second to none, and the thought that one of them might be hurt kept his worries from entirely dying. She had told him many times she didn't care, but he would never know that the way he had worded it had made her entire body blossom in tranquility. No, she didn't want to be alone. She would never be alone again, not with him, not with them. It was fine for him to love them, because she loved them too.

"That's more than enough. That's _everything_," she whispered gratefully, "and that could never be wrong."

He hugged her tighter, and she smiled. Her emotions were playing games with her body, so happy that even the tears that had been gathering, ones that had no reason to mar her face, still wanted to fall. Conflicted between sobbing in joy to laughing in the same, she could only smile. He loved her, and that was all she needed. Cocooned as she was in his arms, she had never wanted to be anywhere more.

Backing away from her, no matter how much he didn't want to, other desires made him. Crystal blue orbs shining with the water they resembled were greeted by burnished copper, and this time she knew the pull wouldn't be fought.

Softly, hesitantly, the request came forth. "Can I kiss you?"

She only smiled more. "You never have to ask me that."

The tears fell when his lips descended on hers, just as softly as his words had been spoken seconds earlier. There was no crushing force, no untamed frenzy, only the _desire_. The desire to tell each other they knew, the desire to tell each other it was right; the all-encompassing, all-consuming desire that made everything else not matter. The desire to show the other they loved them. Though unfamiliar, it was no less perfect.

This time when they pulled away it was welcome, for their faces stayed no more than an inch apart. Her alabaster beauty was complemented by untold exponents with the smile on her face, and her tears made trails of diamond on a canvas of porcelain. She looked so beautiful the tears he had been holding back fell, and as she watched the line of water fall from one of his eyes her smile only became warmer.

"That's why this could never be wrong," she murmured happily, "because nothing this beautiful could be wrong."

Then he was kissing her again. They knew it was goodbye, and they made it worth it until they could see each other again tomorrow. His thirst had never been more forgotten, and when they backed apart they were still smiling.

"Goodnight, Mizore."

She still got a tingle from him calling her by her name, and only her name. "Goodnight, Tsukune. I love you." He caressed his fingers down the side of her cheek, and her eyes fluttered. She made no attempt to stop them; he never failed to make her feel like that regardless.

"I love you too. I'll see you tomorrow."

With a nod, she disappeared into her room. Setting down her bags, she collapsed against the closed door, holding her fingers to her lips lovingly. For the first time, even though she was alone, she didn't feel like it.

"I know you do, Tsukune. I know you do."

…

When Moka and Tsukune arrived at school the next day, Kurumu instantly bounded up and hauled Moka away, much to his obvious confusion.

"Com'on Moka, I've got something for you!" she cheered wickedly. "Girls only, Tsukune!"

The pinkette found herself pulled to the girl's washroom, along with Mizore, whom was just as confused as her.

"What's up, Kurumu-chan?"

The succubus grinned devilishly. "I found a great shop yesterday, so I thought I'd buy us all a little something." Handing a package to Moka and Mizore respectively from her backpack, she positively beamed.

Mizore was the first to open hers. Looking in, she smiled just as widely. "I never thought I'd say this two days in a row, but you're a genius. I like the way you think."

When Moka opened hers she turned bright red, before laughing aloud. She couldn't keep her own smile down at what she saw, because she certainly couldn't refute it. Even her inner self laughed. "Going in for the kill are you?"

Kurumu sent a smirk to her violet-haired duet partner, who returned the smirk just as ruefully. "He won't know what hit him."

…

The first thing Tsukune noticed when they returned was the wide grin on the charm mistress' face, and the other was how flushed the vampiress was beside her, while the snow woman to her right was sporting a rather attractive smirk. They beckoning him over as they turned around to start walking to school, and fate would have it that one of the school's trademark winds just happened to blow by at that very moment.

The young vampire froze to the spot. Had he…_seen_ something? _No, it couldn't be,_ he thought with a relieved shrug, though his eyes strayed more than once to the curved backsides in front of him.

As was what usually happened, Fate wasn't about to let him off that easy.

Another breeze came through, and this time though the girls of the academy screamed as they held down their skirts, one young man happened to see three sets of undergarments, each identical to the ones they usually wore, but with one, _large_, difference.

The words 'Property of Tsukune Aono' were written on all three of them.

It just about became the first recorded case of Death By Nosebleed.

…

**Author's Notes:** Sorry to those that read 'Monster' because I said I'd try to have this out by the end of the week. I was close at least. You know how life likes to throw you curve balls every once in a while? Well, metaphorically speaking, life decided to throw me an inside fast and I forgot to wear my helmet.

I know some of you were hoping for something else this chapter, but I like to keep the lemons in my stories tasteful, and it just wouldn't be if it happened right after the two I had before this. I needed at least one chapter worth of space between them, and some more character development between them all. I'm trying to keep everyone in character as much as possible, as I hope you've noticed. I'm not having Tsukune just jump into the harem scenario, it's not in his personality, and I can only hope I'm keeping the reactions as normal as possible, well, normal enough for the anything but normal universe I'm writing this for.

This chapter just didn't want to come out, and I felt bad because of all the wonderful support I've been getting. I hope the length was satisfactory for the wait involved. As one that loves to read a much as I love to write, I can't stand when I find a good story only to see it hasn't been updated in forever.

Don't worry, I've got _so_ much planned for the next chapter, and even the ones after that! Inspiration comes in the strangest of places, and right now I'm full of it! Wait, that didn't sound right…LOL!

As always, if you enjoyed the chapter, I'd love to hear about it! Please review! They keep up my motivation to write, because not surprisingly it isn't easy to continue writing something no one likes. So, I hope you enjoyed the chapter!


	9. Familiar to Vampire

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Rosario+Vampire, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story. Simple enough, ne? Just don't copy from this story and we're all good!

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**Familiar to Vampire**

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If there was one thing that should _not_ bother Tsukune Aono, it would have to be surprises. Life, and her maniacal sister-in-crime, Fate, seemed all too happy to throw those at him time and again. From learning he had been accepted into a high school without any qualifications, to learning that aforementioned high school turned out to be for _monsters_, his life had been one big surprise after another. Whether it was a tribute to his unfailing belief in the good side of people, or perhaps just his stupidity was up for argument, however the case was that surprises still managed to affect him. Like, for example: finding his name in bold print on the undergarments of three of his best friends.

After learning the young woman he had instantly fallen in love with was a vampire; after being the target of a jealous succubus; after finding a girl four years his junior with _magical powers_ of all things, and learning of the plight of witches and their waning sanctuaries, one would think he would have gotten used to them by now. Then again, if that were the case he wouldn't be affected by Mizore's constant appearances from anywhere and everywhere, and that was the farthest from the truth. Even if he was in a wide open space with nothing to hide behind for miles, he would probably expect her to pop out of his shadow.

Yes, Tsukune Aono and surprises were old friends; the kind that laid traps for the other _knowing_ they would walk into them, that is.

The newest addition to that freakishly long list would have to be his dreams. The only day he could remember _not_ having one was the day he had gone on his date with Kurumu—and Mizore, eventually. _That_ day he had slept like a rock, and it certainly didn't help his blood-deprived body when he had lost so much more through his nose the next morning. A week had passed since then, a week since Kurumu had informed him of their new-and-improved training regimen, and a week since the dreams had started. The only reason he even knew of their existence was because of the lingering traces he could feel at the edges of his consciousness, like he had been doing something all night and just couldn't remember it. What was odd was how they never scared him. Normally he would have his reservations about something as strange as that, but he knew, instinctively, that it was something to be welcomed.

However, he could let all that go. It was trivial at best, and his training with Kurumu and Mizore was improving all the time. Honestly, it had taken everything he had not to scream in frustration during his first session with Mizore, but he was making headway in the undefined realm of manipulating both water and its solid state at least. Illusions were still infuriatingly hard for him to make when it came to causing any kind of physical effect, but Kurumu had confidently stated that that was something only the highest level of Succubae could do, so the fact that he could even reach for that goal was impressive enough. He had to admit, their training schedule was working, even though it seemed completely contradictory to his powers. Like most things in his life however, the time _alone_ with them was both a blessing and a curse. The reason why was painfully obvious on both accounts.

That had been how his days had been going. If there were club activities he went to those, then he would meet up with his training partner for that day and they would spend the following two hours humiliating him and showing him how much he had to improve. After that, he would usually meet up with Moka for more vampiric cooking lessons. To this day he found it hard to believe they had actually made love, and their skin still glowed whenever they were alone. They had yet to have a repeat performance, and Tsukune's body was none too pleased with that. He remembered _those_ dreams well, which was most of the reason he blushed whenever he was alone with her.

Add to that the superheated anomaly of his rosary recurring every morning, and though his life had never been better, Tsukune Aono was thoroughly conflicted. Between the growing sexual tension stretched far too tightly among himself and a certain pair, the progressively strange dreams and the influx of power he felt the following mornings, and the condition of his rosary during that time, Tsukune didn't know what to do. That wasn't entirely true, but it was taking some time to get used to, to put it lightly. Moka had even been allowing him to drink her blood more often than before, and that was the biggest bonus by far. He had no way of knowing a certain succubus had conned her into it in an amazing display of innocent deviousness, but had he known he certainly wouldn't have complained. Though he had hated his Ghoul nature before he could control it, he couldn't deny that her blood was the most delicious thing he had ever tasted, and probably _because _he had wanted it for so long.

Then there was the way Mizore and Kurumu had been looking at him lately, not to mention the way _he_ had been looking at _them_. Each day the atmosphere around their training sessions became gradually heavier, and he was finding it increasingly difficult to keep himself focused on what they were saying and not on the movements of their lips. Just yesterday Kurumu had caught him in his daze, but her smirk said clearly she didn't care. Her kiss seconds afterwards had said all that and much, much more.

Tsukune had never been a stranger to frustration before either; having young women like the kind around him all the time was torture in a great many ways. He couldn't act on it for the first two years because of fear, and that made for some very interesting subconscious wanderings during the night. The one that always stood out the most was when he had dreamt of being in bed with Moka's inner self, but truthfully that was rather tame compared to some of the others. He _was_ a young man in the height of sexual maturity, and with friends like his, enemies were _preferred_.

During this third year on the other hand, something had changed, and the last line had been crossed. He was glad mind-readers were absurdly rare even among monsters, because his thoughts were getting less innocent with every passing day. With Moka it was especially difficult, because though the temptation had been there before, now he had something to associate directly with that arousal. Of course, being who he was, the subject was difficult to address, which only made the tension between him, Kurumu, and Mizore all the more agonizing. All he knew was he had a sinking feeling in his gut that one day the tension would become too much, and just like with Moka, something was going to give. The only questions were _when_, and with _whom._

If only he knew about the conversation Moka and Ruby had had the week prior.

…

When Moka Akashiya finally pulled herself out of bed it was well after noon, and considering how early she had gone to sleep the night before, it could be wondered if there was anything to the legends of vampires sleeping for centuries at a time. Of course _she_ knew they weren't true, but it did earn the first giggle of the day. Her body felt thoroughly refreshed after the lengthy rest. Thanks to all the blood she had consumed the night before and the day after that, she felt even better than she would have normally.

Her muscles ached in protest when she stretched, forcing them out of their blissful respite, but it quieted quickly. More rest wasn't needed, she felt better than she had in a long time. If not for her natural healing capabilities sitting would have been torment the day before, but she would have gladly dealt with that. It was a more than pleasant reminder of what she had done. A healthy blush rose to life on her cheeks just as she thought about it. They had finally done it, professed their love physically, claimed each other just as she had hoped one day they would.

She couldn't help but wonder who would be next though. It was a terribly kept secret how much each of them loved him, and with his turning, things had taken a whole new angle. Far from being disappointed, she was actually rather curious. She had had years to get to know the women that soon fell in love with him just like her—though it took longer for a certain part of herself to admit it—and with everything taken up a notch as it were, it was only natural.

Kurumu was always the most forthcoming, but she knew better than to count out Mizore. The Snow Woman had been getting continuously more physical with her leisurely seduction, and blunt, to be perfectly honest. Waking to find the blue-eyed beauty in Tsukune's hospital bed had definitely pounded that home. Ruby was the dark horse, but after meeting her serious, observant side personally, she wasn't about to rule her out. She had some distinct advantages going for her, but her responsibilities as the headmaster's aide were a disadvantage if ever there was one.

She shrugged as she threw off her covers to get ready for the day. She had cleaned up her room after school yesterday, since Tsukune had gone to train with Kurumu. A small part of her had hoped he would come by in the evening so they could eat together again, seeing as how their first meal had gone to waste. She wouldn't trade what she had gotten instead of that for the world though. She suspected that much like her, he was simply too tired. Not that she could blame him, or even _wanted_ to for that matter.

Heck, she couldn't wait for it to happen _again_.

After going through all the motions for another day, it was already vastly apparent that without Tsukune, life was _boring_. She had homework she could do, but as far as she was concerned it could wait for a while. It was easier to do schoolwork in the evening anyway, the beautiful day was too enticing for her to spend all her time indoors. Shucking her pajamas with practiced ease, she slipped on one of her more casual outfits and, after checking to make sure her hair was still nicely combed, made her way out the door.

It was no big mystery why she found herself in front of the Newspaper Club's room. If she wasn't walking to her room with Tsukune or talking with their friends, it was pretty easy to guess where the pink-haired vampire was more often than not. Surprisingly, the room wasn't empty when she opened the door, and she saw Ruby organizing some papers into proper places within their shelves. It was just like her to be working on their day off.

"What'cha up to, Ruby-san? Don't you ever take a break?"

The witch looked over with a carefree smile. "Of course, but I need to get some stuff ready for club! Nekonome-sensei has been pretty bummed lately with the lack of things to write about, so I'm just getting some materials ready for next week. If we keep skipping club activities we'll be disbanded!"

Moka laughed. "Yeah, but since our members seem to like being hospitalized lately, it can't really be held against us!" she joked cheerily. "What with everything Tsukune's been going through, and us as a group really, there was no time!"

Ruby chuckled back. "Yeah, no doubts about that. Sorry I couldn't meet up with everyone yesterday by the way; sometimes I wish I were a student! The headmaster seems to be putting more on me every day, but it does feel nice to be trusted so much!" She suspected she might not have wanted to miss them that particular day however, when the pinkette's cheeks began to match her hair at the mention. "I didn't miss anything, did I?"

"N-No!" the vampire exclaimed quickly—much, much too quickly for Ruby's tastes. Feeling the disbelieving look thrown her way, Moka coughed nervously. "R-Really!" An eyebrow rose. "I'm not lying!"

"You're acting an awful lot like Tsukune-san yesterday. When he came up to get his Rosario he looked like he was going to jump out of his shoes at a moment's notice. He almost did, actually." She snickered softly, but hastily fixed her pink eyes on the younger woman. "You know you can talk to me, right?"

The hurt tone actually made Moka wince. "I didn't mean it like that. It's…well…I guess I forgot one of us wasn't there to not know."

Clarity brightened the aide's face. "Ah! If you're talking about the dorm, I've already made a note of it! Don't worry; you weren't the only one who noticed." The blush nearly took over the vampire's body, and the eyebrow rose again. "Something else?"

"W-Well, before that, you know about vampires, right?"

Ruby smirked. "A lot more than you'd probably like me to know. It's been a little pet project of mine for a while now."

"So you know about our…um…habits?"

"Which ones? I know about a lot of your…ohhh! You mean about the whole morality thing. I was wondering when you were going to bring that up with Tsukune; God knows I wouldn't mind being his…" she trailed off in a daze with a giggle, but soon shook her head embarrassedly. "Ahem, that is to say, yeah, I definitely know."

The emerald-eyed woman visibly relaxed. "Okay, that makes things easier. I didn't want any of our friends to know without knowing…_that_. I should probably tell you the dorm is fine, I mean, it's not going to fall down on anyone's head."

The suspicious expression came back to the witch's face. "And you would know this how?"

Moka tapped her index fingers together shyly. "B-Because…I think I caused it. More like, I was one of the ones who caused it," she confessed.

"Again, you did this, _how?_"

"Y-You know…Tsukune's a vampire now…_I'm_ a vampire… and we've waited a really, _really _long time…one thing led to another and…"

Both of Ruby's eyebrows shot into her hairline as her friend rubbed her rosary for assurance. "L-Let me get this straight…_that_…really _was_…you and Tsukune-san…?" The other woman nodded meekly. "Doing…_it?_" Another nod answered her, and suddenly Ruby's flesh was brighter than Moka's hair, but the flush wasn't totally out of _embarrassment_. "So…the sounds?"

She wanted to die. Leave it to Ruby to keep on questioning. "Yeah, probably us. You won't tell the headmaster, will you?"

"Tell him!" she cried. "To hell with that, I wanna _join_ you! So which one of you got him first?" The vampire tapped the rosary with more purpose that time, and the witch's eyes got wider. "No wonder. I don't think _any_ building was built to handle two unsealed vampires, fighting or…_not_."

Moka could only hope the blush on her face dissipated sometime that day; it felt like it would never go down. "Y-Yeah. Just thought you should know."

Ruby smiled as she crossed her arms over her own generous bosom. "I think I saw Kurumu-chan waiting for someone at the bus stop earlier today, and if it was it might be that Tsukune-san is actually trying to get this to work. It'd be hard for any good little human to suddenly understand the workings of an immortal, so I'd bet he's just trying to spend a little more time alone with her. He's definitely not like some other guys, who'd jump at the chance, that's for sure."

The pink-haired woman smiled serenely. "And that's why this'll work out. Most vampires just stomp on other people's feelings when they sleep around, and it's not often _love_ that keeps families together. He's my mate, and he knows he's going to be with me forever, but we've grown to love our friends far more than just friendship. I knew he would have trouble with it, and I'll admit some thoughts crossed my mind as well, but he's a vampire, and it'd be pretty stupid of me to hold him to human limitations. Others' 'forever' isn't quite as long as ours, but I know he'll spend it with them just like he'll spend it with me."

Warmth sparkled in the other woman's eyes. "So I guess it's just a matter of when, huh? It does feel nice to know I'm not competing with anyone anymore." After a quick look to the clock on the wall, her eyes widened again. "Wow, I really lost track of time. Have you eaten yet? We could go and grab something from the cafeteria."

She smiled again. "That'd be great."

"Then you _have_ to tell me how he was!"

Poor Moka almost fell flat on her face.

…

Back to the Present, Tsukune Aono finally dragged himself out of bed. For how hard Kurumu and Mizore were working him, he suspected getting up in the morning would be far more painful if he didn't have his now-natural healing abilities. Still, _nothing_ they could do could amount to Inner Moka's Training of Doom. If they heard what _she_ had put him through, they'd probably never believe him.

Once again, as he got up and stretched, his muscles were far from sore. In fact, as had been the case for the entire week so far, he had never felt better. He sighed in relief when he stretched and bones cracked in response, snapping everything back into place. The hot bath he always took after training was done for the day turned out to be useless when he came back from Moka's room, because generally he then had to take a _cold _one as well. Really, it shouldn't be that hard to be around her after what they had done, but then again, it could be _because_ of what they had done. It was only when he was changing that he realized the double entendre in his thoughts, and managed a chuckle.

He hissed as yet again when he tried to move his Rosario from under his clothes, the silver cross burned as if it had been in a furnace all night. He watched the reddened flesh of his fingers heal, and decided to wait a little while before he tried it again. It really was getting annoying, not to mention potentially dangerous, so he resolved to talk to Ruby about it sometime during the day. Having never seen Moka's do anything like it, the phenomenon actually worried him a bit. The weird energy he always found himself imbued with when he started the day was welcome, but he would be daft to think the two weren't related in some way. He needed to find out how.

Unlike the other days however, something new revealed itself today. It started out small, barely perceptible to the half-awake teen, but gradually grew until it was a dull throbbing in his ears. It was like hearing something on a frequency he could just barely pick up, and like most things in his life, it just had to be supernatural in some way. It didn't sound _right_, and the longer he was awake the more annoying the sound became. It was like something was…calling him. The thought of it being more than it seemed was proven when he plugged his ears and still the sound persisted, which rapidly degraded his good mood.

The mother of all headaches was on its way, he just knew it, and by the time he was done breakfast he wanted to scream. Why did it sound like he had heard it before? Why did he _know_ he should recognize some aspect of what he was hearing? At the moment, those questions were discarded for the simple reason that every time Tsukune thought the sound had gone away, it would return, constantly there, just within perception, just enough to make his teeth grind.

He practically ran down the road in the vain attempt to escape the sound, but it followed him relentlessly. He knew he must look strange, running with his hands over his ears down the path to school, but he would do anything to get rid of the damn annoyance that just wouldn't leave him alone!

Moka waved when she saw him approach, but it faltered when she saw his state. He seemed visibly annoyed, nearly in pain, and when he stopped in front of her she could tell how hard he was trying to ignore whatever it was that was causing it. The concern was plain on her face now, and she put a hand on his shoulder to get him to look at her.

"Hey Tsukune, is something wrong?"

He bared his grit teeth. "Can't you…hear that? It's been driving me crazy…all morning! I…I can…_hear_ something…like it's…_calling_…me. Dammit…why won't it go away!"

Now she was getting really worried, and mostly because she couldn't hear a thing other than his labored breaths as he fought to keep his growing frustration under control. "Come on, we'd better go see Ruby-san. Maybe she can get us in to see the headmaster before school starts." His only answer was to nod with the grimace still in place, his eyelids squinted tightly shut in concentration. While Moka knew Kokoa would wonder where they went, this took precedence, so she quickly grabbed one of his hands and ran to the school. Luck would have it that the girl in question had seen the exchange, and took off after them in curiosity.

Since they usually arrived at the same time, unsurprisingly, Mizore, Kurumu, and Yukari saw the two sprinting into the building, and it was hard to miss Tsukune's facial expression. Instant alarm budding in their bodies, they quickly made chase, if not just to see what was wrong. Of course, the elder witch was startled when they burst into the waiting area of the Exorcist's office—which doubled as her main workplace. Upon seeing the looks on her friends' faces, and whom they were looking at with them, it wasn't hard to put two and two together.

"Tsukune-san, is something wrong?"

His arms trembled as they struggled to keep his hands even harder against his ears. "Noise. Weird…noise. Dull…low. Feels…strange. _Calling_…me. Won't. Go. _Away!_"

Her eyes darted around frantically as she fought to come up with some idea of what was going on. When they widened, Kurumu nearly pounced on her to get the answer. "Maybe he's finally starting to hear it…"

"Hear _what?_" the succubus cried out worriedly.

"_Nature_. He drank my blood almost two weeks ago, and he never showed any signs of a witch's power. Maybe something triggered his waning witch's sense, and it's trying to get him to find it!"

The urge to scream was getting larger. "_Nature?_ I can hardly…concentrate! Feels like…stereo feedback!" he shouted, just so he could hear himself talk. "Besides, that was…a long time ago!"

Maybe it was in the way it was worded, but that explanation flicked on a switch in one of their minds. "You know, that's kinda weird, that sounds like what Kou-chan can do when we need to find each other," Kokoa muttered in bewilderment. "It's like a dull scratching, right? At the bottom of your ears? Just loud enough to bug the hell out of you?"

Tsukune could have cried he was so happy someone understood. "Yes! It's exactly like that! How do I get it to go away?"

The younger vampire shrugged nonchalantly. "That's easy: find your Familiar."

A simultaneous look of relief came to those present, until just as simultaneously something occurred to all of them.

"_WHAT?"_

…

Unknown to the infamous Newpaper Club, the headmaster of Youkai Academy wasn't in his office; in fact, he wasn't even in the same dimension as them anymore. He had long thought it overdue to look through Paradise and see the damages done by his two reckless students, but truthfully he had been putting it off as much as he could. The realm had been hard enough to facilitate, let alone populate with monsters. He really didn't want to see what they had done to it.

It was a sad reality that back in the older ages, where mankind was well aware of monsters, many had been unable to live in harmony. Monsters with special physiologies were hunted for the unique things they carried within them, and those lacking the sentience of the higher races were coveted as paranormal work assets, war beasts, even pack animals. The monsters were used to dealing with the animals of their ilk like humans were used to the domesticated kinds of theirs, however when the humans rose up with the beasts under their control, that only hastened the poor species' extinction.

He had found all that he could in his travels, saved that which he could into the protected realm. They were hardly tame, but they knew enough to leave certain species already present alone. The amalgam of different, often dangerous, monsters in the same place made for an incredibly treacherous place to tread, but it made a perfect place for training, there was no denying that. A real threat of death was always conducive to growth. None dared attack _him_ though, that was a given that had been acquired through years of trying, and also an affect of the holy aura he radiated normally.

As he walked through the uprooted, broken tress, the Exorcist sighed. It had been a long time since he had seen the destruction two Vampires were capable of, and it certainly didn't help that the two that had happened to be fighting were of the strongest their race had seen in hundreds of years. Lilith's commentary as they walked earned a few chuckles, but otherwise even the pixie was entranced with the widespread devastation only _two_ beings had sown.

He could only shake his head as he came across a great expanse of shredded landscape, clearly broken from the inside out. It was apparent this particular area had been the arena for an extended fistfight between them, because the way in which the ground had been broken attested to a great deal of force put upon an immovable object. Vampires were one of, if not the only, monster with the power to do something like that and still stay in the same place to take a receiving blow.

There was something to be thankful for in the pride that plagued the eternals, and that was they had long thought humanity to be beneath them. They preferred to blend in, use their longevity to amass riches and followers, rather than risk an end to their blissful existence with war. They had no doubt they could destroy their foes, whoever they be, but most had no desire to build up the world again once it was destroyed. They would rather ensure the source of their nourishment stayed healthy, for that matter. If the humans had come up with one great idea, it would have to be blood banks. As long as the humans were happy in the idyllic illusion they ruled the earth, things would continue on as they had, even if they didn't know they were being manipulated.

Such is ignorance, but that was fine. One day they might get bored, and start a war for the hell of it as was in their nature, but that time had yet to come. If the younger ones wanted their taste of war, they went to the many already existing in the world around them. In any other place what would be considered murder was instead hailed as fighting for one's country, and to a vampire that was the perfect excuse to wet their fangs.

The Exorcist sighed. Tsukune and his friends had managed to prevent the largest uprising of monsters in a very, very long time, but the other sad reality was it was bound to happen again. Years, decades, centuries; time rarely mattered to things like the bitterness of supposed superiority, especially when that superiority had already been quashed once before.

A low crooning caught his attention, and his interest piqued, the robed man walked through the destruction towards the source of the noise. He stopped dead mid-stride when he came upon the cause, and resisted the almighty urge to rub his hand down his face in exasperation.

"**Child, when I said you were going to make the coming years **_**interesting**_**, I didn't mean for you to start **_**right now**_**,"** he groaned to no one, as he looked forward into a crater that had been fashioned into something else entirely. What had caused the impression in the earth had recorded evidence, but now the marker had been formed into a makeshift _nest_, and in the center a large black entity laid protectively, one that wore a red bandana around its neck.

Lilith cackled wildly from on his shoulder, clutching her tiny belly as her legs flailed in her hilarity. "Oh this is too rich! How many years have you been trying to get her to reproduce?"

"**The more accurate question would be how many years **_**haven't**_** I spent. That would be easier to remember."**

"Talk about 'wham bam thank-you ma'am!'" she parodied maniacally. "He probably doesn't even have any idea of what he did!" She fell back into laughter, pounding his shoulder with her petite fist as tears welled in her eyes. "Please…make it stop! It's too much…it hurts…!"

He would have glared at her had she not had every right to find what was in front of her funny. He settled on allowing himself to put his face in his palm, looking through his fingers to the phenomenon before him. _The boy seems bound and determined to keep getting himself into the center of things that don't concern him, even when he doesn't know of them!_ He cast a critical eye on the skies above. _You sent him here to torture me, didn't you?_

"We're getting closer! It's…getting louder!" a voice shouted from in the trees, and the headmaster looked over in time to see abovementioned boy stumble out of the foliage with his friends behind.

An experienced eye on the situation immediately clued him into what was going on, and this time he _did_ rub his hand down his face in exasperation. The fairy on his shoulder saw it fit to look over confusedly, and unlike him, she just started to laugh harder when realization dawned. She fell to her back, gasping for breath between her boisterous bouts of merriment.

One of them looked over at the sound, and Ruby's eyes widened when she saw who was there. "M-Master! What are you doing here?"

Putting back on his composed demeanor, he cast his odd eyes on them critically, and they shrunk back. **"I believe **_**I**_** should be the one asking that question. Taking a field trip are we?"**

"We're just trying to find what's driving Tsukune crazy!" Kurumu retorted defensively. "Speaking of that; how is it now, Tsukune?"

The man she was asking was doubled over with his hands on his knees, but the look of irritation was finally off his face. "Better, actually. I think we're almost there, it's practically gone."

She jumped cheerfully. "All right! I can't believe you contracted a Familiar without even knowing about it!"

_I can_, the Exorcist thought sarcastically, glad they couldn't see when he rolled his eyes.

"I wonder what it is!" She looked over to where Moka and the others had stepped ahead of them, and when she caught up she stopped in a stumble when she noticed how pale they were. Then there was the fact that their eyes were half as big as their heads. "H-Hey, guys, what's up?"

They merely pointed.

When she saw what they were pointing to, her jaw dropped. "No. Way."

Tsukune walked his way forward hesitantly. "What's everyone staring at?" When he looked down into the crater that looked oddly familiar for some reason, he blanched, but the deadpan expression stayed in place. "You know, why doesn't this surprise me?"

A great black Wyvern laid over what was most definitely a mass of dark eggs, but no number could be determined because of its girth. A tattered red cloth was wrapped around the base of its neck, and it growled at the onlookers threateningly. When they looked closer it was easy to see the red bandana was actually a blood-soaked shirt wrapped into an improvised bandage, and that made the specific identity of what was in the crater very clear. It was the same Wyvern Tsukune had attacked and fed from during he and Moka's climatic battle.

"**What are you waiting for, Tsukune-kun? Go, she won't attack **_**you**_**."** What _that_ meant was clear too; _only_ Tsukune would be accepted into range of the nest, any others wouldn't be taken to too kindly.

He gulped heavily as he slid down the crater's incline, but the beast made no move to harm him. The large eyes of the lizard tracked his every movement, and he gulped again when it moved its head over to him and scrutinized him carefully. Whatever it was looking for was obviously found, because it soon lowered its head submissively and rose to its feet, revealing the mass of eggs beneath. When that happened, one thing stood out distinctly, and that was the egg at least twice as large as the rest, and where they were black, this one was pure white. It just had to be that one that the Wyvern nudged with its nose, rolling it cautiously towards the terrified vampire before it rested at his feet.

Now the headmaster really wanted to shake his head. Of course it would happen this way, it involved the young man after all. He was going to need a couple of aspirin after this ordeal. Said young man looked up at him in confusion, and he laughed his patented enigmatic chuckle. **"You didn't think it was her, did you? You defeated her soundly and drank her blood, but you did another thing without knowing: you gave her some of **_**your**_** blood."** Tsukune's eyes widened and darted back to the shirt around the creature's neck. **"Your bloody shirt sufficed to expose her to your blood through her open wounds before they healed, but it was your bite that kindled…**_**this**_**."**

Mizore was not very pleased with where this discussion was going. "Let me guess: the pleasure he usually causes with his fangs jump-started her hormones or something, right?"

Another dark chuckle came then, along with his always creepy smile. **"In layman's terms. You know there are species of lizard in the world that actually don't require a male to propagate. Since she is, in essence, the last of her kind, dragons have long been capable of parthenogenesis. All she needed was the right trigger to her chemical balance. You should be proud, you not only rekindled the dragon race, but you also gained the first real dragon to be seen in centuries as your familiar."**

Ruby looked like she was going to faint. "Y-You mean…the Wyvern is _able_ to bring back their four-legged ancestor?"

"**It's one of the loopholes to being able to create offspring with an XY chromosome system. Dragons are hardwired to guarantee their race survive as long as one remains. Of course, once more males are available again the asexual reproduction will become unnecessary, but that remains to be seen. With this batch of newborns, we may even see more of the dragons of legend in the future. This time, it looks like the first chose our little Tsukune-kun as its partner."** It was taking everything he had not to sound overly amused or frustrated at the development too.

"It's still in the _egg!"_ Kokoa shrieked, and jumped back when the Wyvern hissed at her.

"Dragons are a magical race," Ruby explained simply. "Back when there were more of them it was said they were just as strongly tied to nature as witches, and there was also their impressive size. They never stop growing, but I read some could shape-shift like the Vampires' Familiar of choice: the bat. We have to consider this is also the first time a dragon has ever been a Familiar, in fact, what Tsukune did is probably so unlikely it may never happen again. He just _happened_ to fulfill a very _specific_ list of qualifications, on a _weaker_ subspecies of dragon, in the _perfect_ condition to revive her ancestors and begin the Familiar contract. Even Vampires tended to stay away from full-grown Dragons back in the day."

"**Well said, Ruby-chan,"** the headmaster praised, genuinely impressed. **"I'm glad to see you're expanding on your history. Keep reading the books in my study and you will have professors red with jealousy in no time."** She blushed brightly under his kind words, and Lilith stuck her tongue out at her.

Tsukune picked up the basketball-sized egg gingerly, and the annoying feedback that had been in his ears all morning turned into a gentle purr. Where the former sounded like some kind of supernatural alarm system, the latter sounded like he was actually hearing what lay protected inside the shell he was holding. It was…comforting, really.

"I feel kinda bad because I didn't mean to do this to you, little fella, but I'll try my best to be what you expect. If that's fine with you, I'm fine with it too; how's that sound?" The hum in his ears got louder, becoming more of a happy rumble, before vanishing completely, leaving him in peace once more. "I'll take that as a yes." He smiled at the Wyvern, and the beast nodded like it understood before resuming her perch on her eggs.

Walking back to where his friends stood, still staring for the most part, he cocked an eyebrow at the Exorcist. "You wouldn't happen to know when this guy'll hatch, would you? I don't have to sit on it or anything, do I?"

That mental image caused the headmaster to laugh. **"Hardly. Once the pact is complete she should hatch right away, because unlike normal animals, there are special magics that bind those specifically contracted. Long ago when the first vampire made his agreement with the patriarchal bat of old, it was agreed that the bats would set aside certain offspring every generation. If a vampire wanted a Familiar from the age-old pact, it was only needed that both sides agreed on the partnership. Not all species are imbued with sentience, so in those cases it was trial-by-combat more often than not. It would appear that dragons are of that persuasion."**

Kokoa snorted derisively, likely unhappy that someone else knew about the Vampire's' Familiar contract. "Yup, that sounds about right. Kou-chan's pretty free-roaming, but he knows where he belongs. Some people mistake friends for Familiars, but that's just because they don't know about what goes on to make a _true_ Familiar. Hell, if we're getting into the specifics, dopey over here almost _could've_ been mistaken for one at one point."

Tsukune restrained the growl bubbling up in his chest. "I take it you're talking about me, huh?"

The redhead looked over at him like he was the dumbest thing alive. "Duh, who else had to get saved by my onee-sama's blood again and again? I swear, if anyone else almost got killed as many times as you did, they'd be used as a housemaid!"

Moka put her hand on her half-sister's shoulder warningly. "That's enough, Kokoa-chan." From within her seal, Inner Moka snarled as well.

The younger vampire huffed, irritated. "Fine, fine. That guy's got the devil's luck going for him, I'll admit that. He could probably walk into a feminism convention and end up running away from a strip-attack!" Tsukune coughed hoarsely, and the others smiled widely through their chuckles. The weird thing was it was probably true too. She noticed the look on her violet-haired friend quickly return to something _else_, and cocked her head to the side confusedly. "What crawled up your butt?"

Mizore scowled and turned back to glare at the Wyvern, who merely cracked one eye open to regard the angry monster. "_I_ wanted to be the first to have children because of Tsukune."

There was a near instantaneous mass face-fault that none but the headmaster and Lilith escaped.

"I don't even know why I hang out with you guys," Kokoa moaned as she rubbed her poor nose. "You're all sex-crazed maniacs."

Kurumu rolled her eyes while she picked herself up from the ground. "Don't knock it 'til you've tried it, _brat_. Twenty bucks says you pass out from _one_ of his bites!" Behind them, Tsukune turned florescent red.

"You're on!"

"Um, don't I get a say in this…?" the man in question asked timidly.

"NO!" both women responded at once, and he shrunk back.

Kokoa stomped up to him and exposed a side of her neck before putting her hands on her hips stubbornly. "Come on, bite me! I dare you!"

Her elder sister placed herself between her and her target quickly, waving her arms frantically. "Kokoa-chan, you _really_ don't want to do this, believe me!"

"Get out of my way, Onee-chan! I'm gonna show all of you once and for all this guy's charms aren't all they're cracked up to be!"

At that Moka scowled childishly and twirled around to look at Tsukune. Leaning up to his ear while being cautious of the egg in his arms, she whispered, "Forget what I just said. Amp it up and let her have it!"

Well, he _had_ been meaning to get back at the pint-sized tyrant for a while now. After the night with Moka, he had a _very_ good idea of what his bites inflicted. He couldn't be blamed for what happened; she had asked for it, literally. "I apologize in advance for this, okay Kokoa-chan?"

She snorted as she shook her head in frustration. "Whatever. Do your worst!"

_**Oh this I **_**have**_** to see,**_ Inner Moka thought, her fanged smile spread wide.

"Don't say I didn't warn you…" That said, he did just as Moka had told him to do, pushing up what control he had over his threshold as high as he thought it could go before plunging his teeth into her neck. He had yet to feed today after all, and it was a welcome excuse.

Ruby red eyes turned to saucers. Pleasure coursed through the young woman's body with a ferocity it never had before, even when she did it herself. She _was_ an adolescent teen, and exploring their budding sexuality came with the territory. _This_ she had never expected however; _this_ put all her attempts at pleasure to the lowest level of shame. Her breathing turned ragged, her fingers numbed, her toes curled, before ultimately her eyes rolled back in her head and her knees buckled. The last thought that went through her mind as her world turned black was: _Best twenty bucks I ever spent._

Tsukune caught the unconscious vampire with one arm, now cradling the egg in one and her in the other. He would be the first to admit her blood was damn tasty, almost like liquid cinnamon, spicy and hot all the way down. After all her talk, her pleasure tolerance hadn't been near as big as she had thought obviously. "Well, she _was_ warned. You'll testify to that when she tries to kill me, right?"

Kurumu laughed haughtily. "I think killing you will be the _last_ thing on her mind when she wakes up, Tsukune, I can promise you that."

Inner Moka on the other hand was rolling with laugher, leaving her sealed self to muffle her own outwardly.

Yukari looked at the redhead in her love's hold with a pout. "Why does she get a bite and I don't ~desu!"

Mizore patted her on the head. "You'll get your turn in a few years, Yukari-chan. It's not safe…or even legal, I think." The little witch pouted again and crossed her arms over her chest with a huff.

"Not that I'm trying to change the topic or anything," the former human lied hastily, "but I still don't know when this thing'll hatch, and holding them isn't getting any easier…"

"Oh, sorry Tsukune!" Moka quickly grabbed her younger sister from her lover's arm, and he exhaled greatly when he was able to hold the egg with two hands again. That had been a pretty precarious balance, to be sure.

"**And as for wondering about it hatching, since vampires are a monster that revolves around the giving and receiving of blood, just put some on the shell. She may know you're there, but she can't do anything until you do that and seal the pact,"** the Exorcist answered calmly, and everyone nearly jumped. They had completely forgotten he was even there!

Eager to get his mind off of what had just happened, he offered a hand to Moka. Knowing what he wanted, she smirked before digging her fangs into his palm, getting a taste of her own before relinquishing it back to him. He rubbed his bloody hand down the egg, and almost instantly it was absorbed into the pearly white casing. A loud _crack_ was heard soon thereafter, and he hurriedly put the oval onto the ground in front of him. The Wyvern's interest was gained at this, and a large tear then developed in the hard covering, splitting the shell all the way around. They all held their breath as the egg rocked impatiently, and high-pitched squeaks made their way through. Abruptly, the whole thing shattered, and a tiny, pure _white_ lizard fell awkwardly to the ground.

Large, leathery wings flailed around, each almost twice as large as the animal was itself, until the miniature dragon finally rolled onto its belly and shook itself free of the slick coating lingering from its egg. Amusingly, the top half of the egg still remained on its head, and the poor thing stumbled blindly on its four legs, squeaking pleadingly, before Tsukune had mercy on the small creature and tossed it to the side. The silvery dragon blinked its large gray eyes as it took in its new surroundings, and managed to fold its disproportionate, membranous wings into itself until they were plastered to its sides. Those innocent, steel-gray orbs honed in on Tsukune instinctively, and the minuscule reptile clambered its way up his clothing until it was wrapped protectively around his neck, where it nuzzled his cheek happily.

Tsukune laughed as the scaly cheek rubbed his and he ran his hand down the dragon's long neck, earning a pleased rumble from its small chest. "Well hey there little guy, nice to see you too!" The women had been suspiciously quiet, and he looked over to see them looking at him and the pint-sized myth with stars in their eyes.

_Oh no_.

He had seen that look before.

"CUUUUUUTTEE!" they all squealed at once.

He was promptly tackled by five overexcited girls.

"GYAH!"

Short, breezy rasps came from inside the nest, and if the headmaster didn't know any better, he would have sworn the Wyvern was _laughing_.

…

**Author's Notes:** Wow, this chapter just didn't want to come to me, then inspiration hit and I just couldn't stop! I tried to lower the pages a bit so I could come out with the next one faster, but this kind of took off on me. I don't care either way, I'm kinda glad it worked out the way it did. God did I have fun writing it, and that's all that matters!

It's my goal to keep getting more reviews each chapter, because I hope you all enjoy this story as much as I enjoy writing it! Let me know by telling me about it, I can't know otherwise, LOL! While you tell me about it, how about offering a name for Tsukune's new Familiar? I'm thinking of keeping on the drink pattern of Moka's family—you know, Moka, Kokoa, Kahlua…what should this new arrival's name be? I know I still have stuff to cover, but don't worry, that's what later chapters are for.

I generally try to keep away from the anime-like terms in my story, but sadly no other term but face-fault came to mind to describe what happened at that one point in my story, so I apologize if anyone doesn't like seeing those. I strive to keep my work as professional as possible; it helps me grow, after all. On that note, I should let everyone know I'm my own beta, so I'm also sorry if you notice any errors, I'm constantly reading it myself to pick them out. Thank you in advance for your understanding on that.

Anyways, I honestly hope you enjoyed this chapter, and continue to enjoy the story as it develops! Reviews are always appreciated, so until next time, this is Sabr, signing off.


	10. Buildup To The Breakdown

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Rosario+Vampire, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story. Simple enough, ne? Just don't copy from this story and we're all good!

.

**Buildup To The Breakdown**

**.**

_Tsukune laughed as the scaly cheek rubbed his and he ran his hand down the dragon's long neck, earning a pleased rumble from its small chest. "Well hey there little guy, nice to see you too!" The women had been suspiciously quiet, and he looked over to see them looking at him and the pint-sized myth with stars in their eyes._

Oh no.

_He had seen that look before._

"_CUUUUUUTTEE!" they all squealed at once._

_He was promptly tackled by five overexcited girls._

"_GYAH!"_

_Short, breezy rasps came from inside the nest, and if the headmaster didn't know any better, he would have sworn the Wyvern was _laughing_._

…

There were some situations no one wanted to get into. Be they bank robberies, jury duty, the other end of a weapon, or perhaps face to face with an angry S-class monster; generally, the list was around the same no matter who was being asked. On the other end of the spectrum however, were the situations those of a certain gender—either human _or_ monster—would give their left _arm_ to get into. Among those was the highly unlikely happening of being pinned beneath five beautiful women.

Under normal circumstances, that might have been the case. Tsukune Aono however, was anything but 'normal' anymore. Granted, that fantasy would generally involve a lack of external coverings, but for it to happen at all was something only one with his kind of luck could get into in the first place. It also had to be taken note of that one of those women barely qualified as such yet, but he had seen what she would turn into in a few years. When _that_ happened…he didn't want to think about it.

He'd be lying if he so much as _thought_ that the fantasy hadn't crossed his mind at some point, but currently discomfort was hindering any kind of impure connotation to his present predicament. His beloved new Familiar had jumped ship the second vertigo had begun setting in on his body, and was now nudging his head in fright, wordlessly asking his condition. All he could do was roll his eyes, because he couldn't move any _other_ part of his body.

"You missed," he coughed blandly as he struggled to escape from under them. The _last_ thing he needed was to be reminded of his body's desires, and as it was, a _very_ soft body—he didn't know which one at the moment—was directly over him. The pressure that was putting on his groin was far from unbearable, but it would be before long if something didn't happen soon. Present company severely restricted what that 'something' would be, and being who he was he quickly went for the kindest path.

Various apologies were spouted almost instantly in the clamor that followed, and he gasped in relief when the weight on his body was lessened considerably. It wasn't gone completely though, and when he looked up, he saw who had been second from his unfortunate position at the bottom. Moka Akashiya was staring back at him, her whole body pressed flush against his. Her gorgeous emerald eyes were darkened to a deep forest green, which told him beyond doubt she too was well aware of their position. He had seen _that_ look before too, but it was under far more _pleasant_ circumstances. Gulping heavily, he could only fight to keep his arousal down. It might have worked too, had they both not been leaning closer to each other in an effort for their lips to meet.

Needless to say, the battle was lost before it was even started.

His pink-haired lover smiled not unlike her white-haired counterpart would when she felt the onset of his physiological reaction to her closeness. Thankfully she wasn't completely evil, or unaware of their surroundings, but the decision apparently wasn't hers to make. That was shown because a disgruntled succubus pushed her off of him rather quickly after that.

"Nuh uh! Don't even think about it! There's no way you're getting more of that before me!" Kurumu exclaimed as she crossed her arms over her bust.

Tsukune shot up to a sitting position in an instant, glowing a bright florescent red. The headmaster was shaking his head in amusement while Lilith went back to snickering unashamedly on his shoulder. Mizore looked conflicted between glaring at Moka or the Wyvern, and Yukari was…Yukari. Anything that hinted at romance between her two vampires sent her into hormonal glee. Surprisingly, Ruby was the only one that remembered their original goal, and had since reached down and scooped the newborn dragon into her arms.

"Hello there, cutie! Aren't you just the cutest little dragon I've ever seen! Yes you are! Yes you are!" Tsukune chuckled as the witch cooed at his Familiar while rubbing the soft, leathery skin under its jaw, and it responded by rubbing its head on her neck pleadingly. It was clearly enjoying the treatment, and Ruby just laughed as the soft, blunt spikes and scales on its head chafed her skin ever so slightly.

"It's hard to believe that thing'll be as big as a small mountain in a couple hundred years when it's acting like a kitten right now," the succubus joked with a smile.

"Hey, don't say that. Kittens are only cute once, might as well enjoy it while it lasts. Isn't that right, cutie?" Ruby crooned to the silvery legend she was holding as she rubbed its head with her nose. "Soon enough you'll be breathing fire and flying around with Tsukune-san!"

Said male coughed violently as he picked himself up off the ground, now that it was safe enough for him to do so. "B-Breathe fire? That's real?"

"As real as holy rosaries sap the strength of vampires," she responded simply. "What? You thought _that_ was a myth too? The destruction a grown dragon is capable of was used to scare children way back when, but it was very, _very_ real. Most just didn't think it was worth their time to leave their hoards. Trust me, when a dragon got angry, you knew about it." Something changed on his face as she spoke, and she noticed that quickly. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing. It's just, speaking of rosaries…" He reached into his shirt carefully, and the girls all became curious when he sighed in visible relief before he pulled the cross from its hiding place. "Mine's been…acting up…lately."

The elder witch instantly locked eyes with the Exorcist for a short moment, in search of some kind of confirmation, which was given in the form of a raised brow and a nod of his head. She had to keep herself from smiling, though there was a good deal of consternation also present in her body. _So soon?_ "Acting up, how?"

"I've been having these weird dreams almost every night. I can't remember them, but I get bits and pieces that make me _sure_ I'm having them, and when I wake up this thing is so hot it literally burns. I figured I should probably bring it up since I've got both you and the headmaster right here anyways."

"**It's nothing to worry about, Tsukune-kun,"** aforementioned headmaster allayed those around him. **"Unlike normal vampires, who generally gain more strength the longer they live, you're a special case. While that will happen, you also borrow the strength of others, if they have it to give, when you feed. You're just experiencing the aftereffects of it compensating for whatever growth might occur because of that."**

No one noticed the way Moka's eyes narrowed, and the one person who might have was currently unconscious.

"Ohhh, I get it. Kinda like friction burns, right? The use generates heat. Huh, never thought of that. Why do people look at it strange though? I had it out the day Kurumu, Mizore and I went to the Arcade, and some people reacted pretty oddly," Tsukune noted as he held the ornate cross in front of his face and scratched the back of his neck.

"**Again: nothing to worry about. You and your club have gained quite the reputation over the years, and with all the rumors going around for the past few weeks, it's not surprising they would be looking at you differently. They probably just pictured you with silver hair and red eyes. Not all monsters are dumb enough to assume a rosary is a fashion statement you know, and word travels quickly."**

Lilith's smile was downright deadly. "And some might see the resem—mmff!" She was cut off quite hastily by the Exorcist's gloved finger, even though his facial expression betrayed nothing. Moka's thoughts were confirmed by that though, seeing as how hers had been along the same line. While she suspected why her lover wasn't being told, she wasn't about to voice her opinion. She had had her concerns, and judging by what had just been said, she had been right in keeping them to herself. She wouldn't dwell on it, in any case.

"**Don't mind her. Now, are you going to give your Familiar a name, or will she have to put up with 'cutie' for the rest of her life?"**

"Of course I'm giving her a name!" the young vampire retorted defensively. Then his mind actually thought about what was just said. "Wait, _her?_"

"**Why of course. Asexual reptiles are generally referred to as females unless the case deems otherwise, which this particular time is more than likely, but even then it's probably a girl."**

"This _is_ Tsukune-san we're talking about here," Yukari conceded thoughtfully.

Kurumu nodded. "You're right about that."

"He _has_ attracted both genders before…" Mizore countered, and Tsukune shuddered just at the mention.

Moka was the one that took the logical route. "How about you, what do you say?" she asked the newborn, who seemed enamored with the emerald orbs looking at it. "Are you a boy?" It looked at the blood red crystal set in the center of her rosary as if entranced, before finally shaking its head. "Oh wow, it's actually pretty smart! So you're a girl?" The small head nodded her confirmation, and just like that Tsukune's Familiar had a gender.

A paw set with small, sharp talons reached out curiously, swatting playfully at the silver cross set between her breasts, and Moka backed up. "Aw, you want to come over to me? C'mere!" She held out her arms invitingly, and the dragon wasted no time in jumping from Ruby to the pinkette, oblivious to the witch's objections. The bonded creature kept pawing at the Rosario she obviously found interesting, and Moka just seemed captivated by the tiny beast she was holding. "I never thought I'd actually get to hold a baby dragon! She is _so_ cute!"

Meanwhile, as most of the group was caught up watching the vampiress play with the dragon, the headmaster of Youkai Academy had quietly made his way over to the mistress of illusions. Kurumu nearly jumped when he put his hand on her shoulder, but she calmed fast enough upon seeing his look. **"So, I take it your training with our young friend is going well?"**

She would never get used to feeling like those eyes were seeing right through her every time they were set on her, like he knew everything she—or anyone else—was trying to hide. "Y-Yeah, well enough I guess. Why the sudden interest?"

"**Nothing really, I suppose I was just curious as to who designed that…unusual schedule."**

It wasn't stated as a question, and the way he was looking at her told her all too well that he knew already, but it also tipped her off to something else. She dropped her voice to a near silent whisper, casting a suspicious, dangerous look at one of, if not the most powerful man in Youkai Academy. "Wait…you _knew_ he would be able to use our powers even after he was sealed, didn't you? You _knew_ the rosary would start acting weird!"

"**I plead the fifth, as they would say overseas. If it will calm your nerves, it's nothing dangerous, I can assure you. I would advise against trying to remove his rosary in the foreseeable future, just to be safe. It would seem **_**you**_** are more aware of his situation than he is though; does he know about **_**that?**_**"** he replied pointedly, and watched the now impotent fury burn in her violet eyes.

"I don't know what game you're playing at, but I know there's more to this than what you've said," she hissed, and just barely restrained herself from poking him in the chest to emphasize her words. She had to keep in mind just who she was speaking to. She had seen him skewered completely through, then no worse for wear hardly any time afterwards. He was a Dark Lord, and though she was an extremely powerful high-class monster, she couldn't claim the same.

"**Ah, but what if my goal is the same as yours?"**

That stopped the succubus dead in her tracks. Her romantic dream with the vampire was known to everyone, but the ulterior goal she had developed with Mizore was known only to them. The thought that it wasn't just between them, and hadn't been since the beginning, made her limbs numb. "But…then you…"

The Exorcist was already gone. She huffed indignantly as she made her way back to her friends, and saw that Yukari had now joined Moka in playing with the miniature magical creature in her arms. While she had never expected him to gain a Familiar, she couldn't deny that the dragon suited Tsukune like he had always been meant to have it. If it hindered any of her attempts to get closer to her destined one on the other hand, oh there would be hell to pay.

Of course, the small dragon was none the wiser to any of the thoughts going through the various females around her, and was thoroughly enjoying the attention. She kept her focus on the glimmering silver Rosario in front of her for the most part, more often than not missing and pressing innocently against her ample chest. "Geez, those aren't playthings you know!" Moka scolded as she swatted the nosy dragon's paw away from her breasts. Her eyes happened to lock with Tsukune's however, and he flushed scarlet. She almost laughed aloud at what instantly came to mind, and she could have sworn she heard her inner self lick her lips. _At least, not yours._

Kurumu always did have the best timing, and she immediately jumped in and said the thought out loud. "Tsukune can play with mine all he wants!" she exclaimed happily as she squeezed her generous bosom invitingly.

Tsukune looked like he was about to spontaneously combust. That, or suffer one of the biggest nosebleeds to date. "W-We should really get back to class! It's probably started without us already!" he stuttered as he shot forward to grab his new familiar from his lover's arms. "B-Besides, s-she's p-probably hungry. I-I should try to get her some meat from the cafeteria!"

She was picked up easily enough, but at that moment her paw finally managed to catch a talon on the Rosario she had been trying to get at ever since she had been put in her hold. The look of surprise on Moka's face as she was suddenly pulled forward was priceless, and as she was tugged into Tsukune and their lips met, the Rosario fell free. Seeing the surprised expression on Outer Moka was amusing enough, seeing the same on Inner Moka was downright comical. She quickly realized what position she was in though, and eagerly wound a hand into her lover's hair as her Youki flared around them. Being awoken to this was definitely something she could get used to.

Rather than be crushed between the two bodies, the small dragon had hastily crawled up her partner and was once more wrapped around his neck, innocently watching the two vampires kiss. The pleased hum that escaped the white-haired woman sent the others into varied degrees of both arousal and fury, but the husky groan that came from Tsukune's throat as they pulled away from each other sent nothing but the former through their bodies.

Ruby red reptilian eyes stared down into the mercury orbs of identical make, vampire and dragon each looking at the other fearlessly. Finally, Inner Moka smiled slyly. _**"Oh yes, you will do nicely. It shouldn't surprise me that Tsukune's Familiar can remove my seal as well."**_ She gazed back up at her lover lustfully. _**"And as for you…"**_ She was about to go back for another kiss when the dragon nipped out protectively, likely responding to the sharp fangs she saw. Moka would have none of that, and bopped the newborn on the head just strong enough for her to get the message. _**"Know your place."**_

Sufficiently cowed, the Familiar lowered her head, and the vampiress went back to her lover's lips.

When at last she pulled away, she flicked her hair back with a wave of her hand and licking her lips sensuously. Amusement danced in her eyes as she saw the irritation on both Kurumu and Mizore's faces, and just as she was about to reach down and pick up her fallen rosary, a small rumble caught her attention. Intrigued by the noise, she noticed the dragon rubbing her head on Tsukune's cheek just as she had earlier, but this time there was another need clearly expressed on her reptilian face.

"_**You were right, she is hungry. To be expected of one so young."**_ She ran a pale hand down the myth's neck lightly, almost like she was in awe of what she was seeing. _**"You never fail to amaze me, Tsukune. I can't wait to see what our future holds. For now, we should return."**_ Casting one last glance over her shoulder at the annoyed black and white duet, she smiled as she picked up her seal and kissed her lover before clicking it into place. _**"Good luck."**_

Back to her outer self, Moka flushed a deep red as she parted from Tsukune and detected the animosity sent her way. Inwardly strangling her ever-loving inner self for goading their friends, she could only rub the back of her neck sheepishly. "Umm…we should probably go, huh?"

Kurumu glared at her before doing exactly what she had done before, and of course that involved grabbing her destined one's neck and pulling him down for a heated kiss that killed any thought he might have had in his head. As Tsukune stumbled back, trying to recover from the experience, the succubus merely turned to her vampire friend and stuck her tongue out at the Rosario she wore. Mizore had walked up to him by then, and he smirked slightly before he gave her what she wanted. It wasn't like it was a chore; the farthest thing from in fact. Her fingers curled in his blazer as heat coursed through the Snow Woman, and her mind briefly registered how talented his tongue had become before they pulled away.

By that point Ruby's skin was matching her shirt and eyes, and she was doing her best not to look. Failing horribly, but still doing her best. When Tsukune walked up to her, she almost panicked. "D-Don't feel obligated! I really don't ca—mmmmhhh…" She had never been interrupted so pleasantly before, and the fact that Tsukune was actually taking the initiative made it all the better for the masochistic witch. There was no helping the look on her face when he let her go, and Yukari was in full-blown pout mode now.

"This just isn't fair ~desu! Is a kiss too much to ask?"

His friends almost blew a fuse when he started walking over to the youngest member of the Newspaper Club, but to their relief he simply bent down and gave her a gentle kiss on her cheek. He put a hand to the side of her face and smiled. "I know, Yukari, but this is the way it has to be. Just be patient, alright?"

They watched as red crawled up from her socks, up her shirt, and to the roots of her hair, until finally smoke flew from her hat and she fell over unconscious. Whether it was from the kiss, or that he had called her by only her name was hard to decipher, but the end result was the same. Kurumu cackled in perverse glee and rubbed her hands together when she saw the young witch faint.

"Oh-ho! So she can dish it out but she sure can't take it from the looks of it! Oh little witchy you are in _so_ much trouble now!"

Tsukune simply sighed. Now they had _two_ unconscious members to deal with, a newborn who had every right to be hungry, and they were already late for school. It had its redeeming qualities, but for the most part the day had started off terribly.

_Oh well,_ he thought lightheartedly, _when life gives you lemons…_

Striding over to where Kokoa still lay in her pleasure-induced coma, he picked up the small vampire easily. Considering the weapons she wielded at the smallest provocation, she really was just as light as she looked. It was only because of what she was that she had so much strength despite that. "Would one of you mind picking up Yukari? We've got to stop at the nurse's office for these two before I go get some food for this little guy."

"Little _girl_," Ruby corrected instantly. "Speaking of which, what's her name going to be?"

"You say 'Gin' because she's silver and I'm going to hurt you," Kurumu threatened playfully, and Tsukune laughed. One Gin was certainly bad enough, they didn't need another.

"And 'Latte' because of the weird drink fetish Moka's father seems to have and I'll do the same," Mizore added.

He pouted as best he knew how. "So I guess Reishu's out of the question then?" he joked lightly, and they all nearly choked on the sudden laughter that evoked.

"'Cold Sake'? Oh boy, we've really been corrupting you, haven't we?"

"How about just Rei?" the elder witch suggested honestly, and Tsukune thought about that for a second.

"Beautiful, lovely child? It does sound better than 'cutie', that's for sure. How about it?" he asked the dragon still laying limp around his neck, "Rei sound good to you?" She squeaked her affirmation, and the first dragon to be seen in centuries had a name. "Well then, Rei-chan, we'd better go get you something to eat! We've got a long day ahead of us."

From Paradise they walked, back into the realm of Youkai Academy.

…

The cafeteria cooks stared at the young man that had come into their kitchen. They all knew who he was; there wasn't anyone in the whole school that _didn't_ know who this particular man was. After watching his battle with a fellow vampire, he was a celebrity in his own right. Even that paled in comparison to what they were seeing now, and there had been more than a few that had instantly rubbed their eyes, just to make sure that what they were seeing was real.

A glittering silver _dragon_ was draped over the back of his neck, sniffing hungrily at all the scents in the air around them. They had been informed by the headmaster that someone would drop by soon after him for some leftovers, and that they were to oblige them, but they had never suspected they would be catering to the revival of a _myth_. As the vampire told them what he was doing there, their eyes just kept on widening.

"So…yeah, that's the story," Tsukune finished awkwardly as he tried to keep Rei from jumping into the rows of food being made before her. "My Familiar just hatched, and she's pretty hungry. If you've got any meat or anything you can spare, I'd really appreciate it."

The entire kitchen was in motion in the blink of an eye.

Rei must have consumed three times her body mass under the adoring gaze of the kitchen staff, not counting the water she drank to wash it down, and in record time. When she was finally full, she belched contently and waddled back to Tsukune with her belly distended comically. Tsukune simply continued getting redder as his Familiar kept eating more and more, far more than he had ever thought possible for such a small thing to consume.

"I-I'm really sorry, I guess she was hungrier than I thought! Thank you so much for the food, and again, I'm really sorry for her! Rei-chan, can you thank the nice people for giving you all that food?" The small dragon, once more limp around his neck, opened an eye sleepily and squeaked at them in what they could only assume was gratitude. Soon after she had nestled down again, and Tsukune almost laughed when he heard tiny snores coming from his shoulder.

"It was no problem, Aono-kun," the head chef—a middle-aged woman with a flawless human disguise—answered politely. "Just to say that we fed the first dragon seen in ages is honor enough, but to say that same dragon was also a vampire's Familiar…that's almost too good to be true. You better make a good name for yourself once you're done school, young man; otherwise no one will believe me when I tell them."

Tsukune scratched his ear in embarrassment. "Tell me about it. I'm sure the headmaster will work something out once she's big enough to get food on her own, but until then would you mind if I…" It almost seemed like too much to ask after what he had just seen Rei do, and Tsukune hated being an inconvenience more than anything.

"…Kept coming by?" the head chef completed with a smile. "It would be our pleasure. Take these, they'll tide her over for a little while when she gets hungry again." She handed him a plastic bag filled with what looked like beef jerky, and he smiled and bowed thankfully, careful not to disturb the sleeping baby on his shoulders.

"Thank you again. I'll pay you back when I can, I promise."

She smiled again. "Don't worry about it, really. You should get going, I'm sure you're late enough." She nearly laughed when she saw his eyes widen, and with another bow he had taken off out of the kitchen, unmindful to all the conversation that had instantly started once he and his Familiar were gone.

The chef could only shake her head as she chuckled, still looking down the hallway he had taken off through. "That had to be the strangest vampire I've ever seen. Guess you can't believe every rumor you hear around here."

She turned back to her staff and snapped them into line. They still had lunch to prepare.

…

It was only after a profuse apology, and what he could only suspect to be the Exorcist's handiwork, that he was allowed back into class with little objections. Then again, Shizuka Nekonome had always been one of the more lighthearted teachers of the academy. That was probably shown most in her seemingly involuntary transformations, and more so in that she actually chose to live in the human world when at all possible. Though many monsters did so after graduating, there were still more than a few that had sanctuaries restricted to them and their brood. The hidden city of the Snow People was the most known example of such.

Not very many people seemed to be aware of the special addition to his apparel, but he thought he had seen one of his teacher's perpetually-squinted eyes open for just a second. The thought that she was more observant than people often gave her credit for made him ill at ease. Youkai Academy had enough people that apparently had the ability to see through him, another was not something he needed, especially at this time. If Rei was bothered by his steps she didn't show it, and the reason she was being overlooked so much was likely because of the fact that she was still sleeping soundly.

He took his seat as quietly as he could, and smiled back at his friends as they did the same when they spied the newest member of their group, resting comfortably on her partner's shoulders. The look they were giving him was generally reserved for a man with a puppy, or perhaps a father holding his child, but when he thought about it he really wasn't that different from the latter, seeing as how the hatchling wasn't even a day old. It definitely triggered their cuteness radar, and he didn't mind being on the other end of those looks one bit.

It already felt like they had gone through an entire day though. From waking up to her call almost as soon as he was able, to talking to Ruby, to finding the source, to hearing various explanations, and of course, Rei's hatching, he already felt exhausted. School was the last thing he wanted to do, but, that wasn't a new thing either. He knew taking care of his new charge shouldn't be too hard; he had seen the intelligence glittering behind her gray eyes. She would have many things to learn, and he knew that, but the trial and error leading up to what she did and didn't know was one thing he wasn't looking forward to.

Then his eyes would trail back to his love interests, and another concern would make itself known. He had been able to ignore it for the better part of the week—his dreams excluded—but feeling Moka's body on top of his again did nothing to help calm his libido. Then with the tension growing ever tighter between him and his recent trainers, the hormonal young vampire was between a rock and a hard place, almost literally. Now he had another responsibility to boot, and that didn't bode well for trying to soothe that tension before the break became too volatile. Knowing him, it almost certainly wouldn't matter. Luck he may have, but it always seemed to come after an excruciatingly long wait.

The experiences of the day may have already left him emotionally drained, but his body was anything but. Kokoa's blood was almost as good as her half-sister's; key word being 'almost.' His hand still tingled from where Moka had bitten him, and he knew it wasn't because of any lingering pain either. Now every time she bit him he was instantly reminded of a glowing red moon, shining crimson light over a perfect pale body straddling his. A smile with fanged teeth, a kiss with crimson lips, and making love until the world revolved solely around them; the memories were practically as vibrant as the time they had been created.

Red eyes, green eyes; silver hair, pink hair; it didn't matter. When that vision became blue-eyed his fingers dug into the wood of his desk, and when violet eyes appeared beside them yet, he was sure he heard the metal of his small table protest. It really became bad when rose colored eyes intervened as well, and suddenly, banging his head against a hard surface repeatedly seemed like a good idea. He was only thankful Yukari was still so young, because if she started appearing in his fantasies he'd be the first to give himself to the authorities.

Still, he and Moka's first experience together was something he would never forget, and he knew the boiling point would eventually be reached with the others that occupied his heart. He could still feel the static tension that had sparked in the air around them that night as they cooked dinner, and the resulting explosion was unforgettable. He wanted theirs to be just as special, but how to make that possible consistently eluded him. That same tension was there every time he sparred with Mizore or Kurumu, and sometimes it worried him what would happen when they finally gave in. Actually, what worried him more was _where_. His impressive restraint was beginning to fail him, and if that was happening already it didn't take much to guess where both of them were. Mizore had always been able to hide more behind her expressions than Kurumu, but he would never be able to erase the feeling of that strain in the air. It had become ingrained in his memories too far for that.

Sometimes he really hated his chivalrous nature. Right then he really needed to blow off some steam otherwise it felt like he would explode! Maybe he would ask for a joint session with his self-proclaimed trainers. Fighting one of them was hard, but both of them at the same time would be practically impossible sealed as he was. In other words: it was perfect. He _wanted_ impossible; that meant he would have to use everything he had, and hence have nothing left for something like hormonal fantasies. Say, like the kind he hadn't been able to get rid of since he felt Moka's body on his again.

At least Rei was still sleeping, completely ignorant of the thoughts overtaking her partner's mind. With her yet another dynamic was added to the romantic equation between him and his heart's desires. She was still so young it probably wouldn't be practical to leave her alone, unless it was in his room, and he didn't know how quickly she would develop either.

He had already known it, but as his thoughts went around in circles, he came to the same conclusion he had come to once before.

He was _so_ screwed.

…

Lost in his thoughts, the fledgling vampire didn't notice the underlying emotions in the looks he was receiving, and it wouldn't have been too hard either had he been paying attention. Others might not have noticed it, but they had long become attuned to their Tsukune's moods and expressions. What made this one so easily recognizable was because it was one of the few most of them _hadn't_ been exposed to yet, and labeling a new look was no trouble with the small amount of his emotions they had left to discern.

One person knew it without doubt though, even if technically it was two people that knew. The smoldering _lust_ in his eyes sent her back to another time, and the only thing that made it any different from the gaze he had fixed on her as they made love was the confliction within it. She knew nothing had happened between him and any of his other would-be lovers, because Kurumu would be the first to tell her when they crossed that line. Hell, she would almost certainly shout it from the rooftops if she was allowed.

Moka Akashiya might have once been bothered by the idea of having to share Tsukune, but that all changed when he did, and his lifespan was no longer restricted to the small blink in terms of eternity. She might have once been selfish enough to desire all of his eighty or so years to herself, but now that didn't matter, she had something much better. They could live their lives out with him, and she would too. It just so happened that her life was a bit longer than theirs.

It was almost embarrassing how close she had come to tearing off his clothes again when she felt him react to her, and had they not been surrounding by people there was little doubt in her mind she would have done so. If she had thought the sexual pull had been hard to resist before they had given in, it was positively nothing compared to after. Fantasies can only go so far, but having something _real_ to compare them to was another matter altogether. It had only been a week, but it felt like so much longer when she found herself on top of him again, even if it had been a complete accident.

There was an upside, if it could be considered that. Summer Break was coming up in a month's time, and then they would have no school obligations other than the usual homework. She had always imagined them as lovers, but now that they were, going to his home had whole new meaning. Certain things would be hard, they were difficult as a Ghoul, and she knew they would be all that and more now that the only thing left of his humanity was his relatively human mindset. But still, all that time with nothing to do was a dream come true, and there was no way she was going to waste it.

Sometimes it amazed her how deeply she was in love with him, and every time she was reminded of that she couldn't help but think of how much he had changed. Each change made him stand out more, and yet every time something new appeared she knew it was meant to happen. A single human sent into a world that wasn't his own had changed it even more than it had changed him.

She knew that solitary image of him that morning would forever lay in her memories. It wasn't their failure of a tackling, or even their kiss, instead it was his back. She had been walking by his side, in the perfect position to see his profile, and one of the planets in the sky had momentarily darkened his features. As the light set his brown hair aglow, Rei's silver scales came to life, glittering like white jewels around his neck as he carried the unconscious Kokoa with ease. There had stood the kindest human she had ever met, turned into one of the most powerful _vampires_ she had ever met, carrying another in his arms as a dragon laid around his neck like it was an everyday occurrence. Flanked by a Snow Woman, a Succubus, and a witch while she herself carried Yukari, she knew this was a force that could even give her father pause. She hoped it would too, because once word got out things were bound to get ugly.

Even when he was human, there had been something about him that was special. Now, now that was simply visible. As a human he had conquered a vampiress' pride with love, and as a vampire he had forced her to acknowledge that. As a human he had protected as many people as he could with his friends, as a vampire he didn't need to rely on his friends anymore, but did anyway. He didn't think of himself as all-powerful, he knew he had faults and weaknesses, and he trusted his friends to cover for them. It had taken a while, but when Moka's inner self had grasped that, it had changed the way they fought together. All because of one human.

She wouldn't have it any other way.

Now she just needed to plot a way to have _him_ again.

…

There was something to be said for small mercies, and one of them was that Rei remained sleeping for the entire class, despite all of Shizuka's numerous vocal acrobatics. The cat woman defined 'carefree', which was likely why she was one of the favorite teachers in the school. Kagome Liliko was ahead of her only because of the many boys that had voted for her, but if they knew what Tsukune did they'd never be able to see the math teacher in the same light again. Well, some of them might. Who knew what everyone was into?

He shuddered.

It was an absolute miracle when the day passed by totally with no one the wiser to the newborn dragon's existence, and needless to say Tsukune was ecstatic. All the buzz about him had finally started to die down, he was in no rush to get to the top of the gossip loop again. As he opened the door to his room Rei woke up, having deemed the many classes her partner had to go through not worth her attention. The only class she actually stayed awake for was English, which was odd since it was one of his worst subjects. He had understood it more as of late, but he wouldn't bank on a long-term trip overseas anytime soon.

Bending down to make the descent to the ground smaller, he gestured to the floor. "Come on, Rei-chan. This is my room, which I guess means it's your room too until you get too big."

Whether she understood his words or just the motion was unclear, but she hopped off his shoulder all the same. He had to smile as he watched the small creature patter around his room, and eventually decided curling up on his pillow was the best thing to do.

"Yeesh, if sleeping was a sport you'd be unbeatable," he commented jokingly, and one of his Familiar's eyes opened in a very recognizable glare. He knew it should have unnerved him because he had only seen its likeness on his female friends before, but for some reason the thought of her being more intelligent that she seemed didn't seem too farfetched. She probably _was_ glaring at him. He held up his hands in surrender. "Okay, okay, I'm sorry. You're a growing girl, I understand that."

She squeaked her approval of his words before nestling down again, and Tsukune chuckled as he walked to his closet for his training clothes. He had already ruined enough uniforms over the course of his years at Youkai Academy, and had learned a long time ago that if one is going to train with monsters, they'd better be prepared to sacrifice some clothing in the process. He muffled a groan when his mind instantly equated that with a _different_ act that often demanded that same prerequisite.

_How do you tell your mind to get out of the gutter when your body's already with it?_

Mindful that he was in the presence of a member of the opposite gender, however aware the other party might have been of that fact, he stowed away to the washroom to change. Rei must have opened her eyes again in that time, because he stumbled back into the room as fast as he could when terrified feedback suddenly started clawing at his ears. He quickly made his way over to the scared infant, shushing her soothingly, and that was truly when he realized that was exactly what she was. For all intents and purposes, she was only a child. He had gotten so caught up in the _myth_ and _legend_ speeches about her, that he had never thought that he was more of a lifeline, or even a parent, than a partner at the moment.

His shirt was undone haphazardly and his belt was still in the process of being loosened, but nonetheless he relaxed beside his pillow and let the small reptile crawl onto his stomach, undoubtedly seeking out his presence. He cradled his shivering Familiar and ran a couple of fingers over her fragile wings, and thankfully she was calm within minutes. With a deep sigh, he ran a hand through his hair.

_Well, this is going to be more interesting than I thought._

…

Kurumu was delighted when she saw their new friend wrapped around her destined one's neck as he approached where they trained. She laughed, naturally, when he relayed the tale of a near-broken bathroom door because of the dragon's panic, and pet her head lightly.

"Don't worry. From what I heard from Ruby, dragons grow really fast in their first few months. This stage shouldn't last long, but it's not surprising. She's barely a day old and she can almost do enough to survive on her own! Jeez, dragons are pretty scary even when they're little! Guess their reputations aren't for nothing, huh?"

"The more time I spend here the more I wonder what's real and what's not," Tsukune replied as he shook his head. "I mean come on, if I believed half the things humanity thinks about Succubae I'd be running away from you screaming. God knows what's actually true about Rei-chan!"

At that Kurumu's smile turned predatory, and she strutted towards her prey seductively, swaying her hips all the while. He gulped heavily when she pressed herself against him and slowly ran a finger down his jaw, pulling his gaze to her vibrant amethyst eyes, hooded darkly in lust. "And how do you know what they say isn't true?"

His body temperature must have jumped twenty degrees, and he was sure the look he was now giving her was nowhere near that of a friend. He nearly growled as his heart hammered in his chest, and brought his head down just centimeters away from hers. That magnetic attraction was building, demanding he get closer, and his voice came out in a near silent whisper. "Something tells me I wouldn't care."

Her bluff called, the succubus felt her cheeks heat up. True, he didn't know half of what the original Succubae had used their illusions—and most of their abilities in general—for, but the way his hot breath was crashing down on her in tightly-held restraint made her want to do her ancestors proud. Then she noticed the dragon still curled around his neck, and remembered the conversation they had just had. Suddenly strangling the small creature came to mind, myth or no.

So, reining in her lust, she willed her breathing to calm and smiled normally. "One day I'll show you, you can count on that." She hadn't counted on him not moving away however, and as he barred his teeth she noticed his fangs were fully extended. She stood stock still, not out of fear, but out of anticipation, as his lips brushed her neck ever so softly, and she no longer knew if his deep breaths were to calm himself, or to inhale as much of her scent as he could. The desired pressure started, the prelude to his beloved ability, and then just like that it was gone.

Suddenly strangling _him_ came to mind, destined one or no.

He drew back, and she had to admit Tsukune pulled off a smirk surprisingly well even though she wanted to clock him. "I wouldn't want you too weak to train me, right?"

If it wasn't for his deliberately teasing tone she might have thought he was sincere, and her eyes glinted dangerously as she smiled back at him. He had not only called her bluff, he had also upped the ante at the same time. All her lessons on cunning and confusion were being taken to heart at least, she could certainly see that. Illusions were always easier if the victim was unsteady mentally, but of course the biggest factor in their effectiveness was the amount of Youki both parties had.

"Just for that, you better start running. Today we'll be practicing illusions during combat!" Her nails shone before springing to their full length, and Tsukune gulped before hastily removing Rei from his neck.

"C-Can't we talk about this?"

Her smile was sickly sweet. "Nope!"

Rei was left to wonder if her partner was masochistic, or if maybe his friends were just _sadistic_.

…

That one day had become two, then three, then four even! Needless to say Mizore Shirayuki was not a happy camper. She wasn't alone in these thoughts either; Kurumu had been none too happy over the past few days, and Moka was getting exceedingly irritable as time went by. The change could even be seen in the ever-cheerful Tsukune. Their training sessions had often become mock brawls just to relieve some of the practically palpable tension in the air around them. Of course, whenever things got too heated Rei would decide to voice her presence, halting any further action, and thus making the tension worse.

The small dragon had grown by leaps in just four days. Where once she was barely the size of a football, she was now the size of a large dog, and almost came up to Tsukune's waist. She had managed to avoid notice the second day after her birth as well, but by the third day she had become big enough to walk on her own beside her partner. He would have left her in his room if it was possible, but she still liked having as much time around him as she could, even if she was simply sleeping beside his desk.

Unsurprisingly, those inside the school that hadn't known about her had had a fit. Seeing a real live dragon was even more of a shock than seeing a classmate they had known for years unsealed as a _vampire_. For it to be his Familiar yet was almost too much to take. Obviously, some still reacted normally, or as normal as Youkai Academy ever got. Rei had almost been dog-piled by the excited girls around her, and Tsukune had been privy to looks of respect from his male peers, with not a few looks of jealousy thrown in too. He just tuned out whatever other rumors got started, because honestly enough he didn't care. More like he was too distracted to care, but it served the same purpose.

As Kurumu walked to school on the fifth day since Rei's joining, something unexpected happened. Usually Mizore was off hiding by now, or already at their meeting place, but today she walked out of her room at the same time and met the pace her friend was setting.

"Wow, you're up late today. I thought it was physically impossible for you to sleep in on a school day," the mistress of illusions commented smartly, and the Snow Woman merely rubbed her eyes.

"I like my dreams more than reality lately," she responded simply, and Kurumu's smile faltered. "I've always watched, I've been content doing that, but now I want to _touch_ so _badly_ and I _can't_. It's…it's…maddening!"

Her friend nodded her understanding, even though the display of even mild irritation was uncharacteristic for the blue-eyed woman. "I know what you mean. Every time Tsukune and I get somewhere, Rei gets in our way! I always have to stop our lessons after that! Have you ever tried fighting in ruined panties?" To her shock, Mizore nodded, and she put her face in her palm. "Of course you have, you're in the same mess."

"It's gotten to the point where I'm almost scared of him biting me. Getting new panties is no big deal, but jumping him in the middle of the school? I swear…"

Kurumu's grin came back full force. "Dang, I never thought you'd have it in you. I've thought of doing it a few times already too."

"And then your dreams start playing games with your body," she muttered bitterly.

"Alarm clock, huh?"

Mizore scowled. "How'd you know?"

The bluette shrugged. "Same here."

Her shoulders sagged, suddenly bereft of any misplaced anger. "This is getting ridiculous. It was bad last year, but it's barely been two weeks since we heard Moka and Tsukune doing their best to break down the dorm, and now…!" She would have completed her sentence, but she had been caught up in her imagination for the nth time that day already.

The succubus' eyes lit up. "Hey, what if…" She leaned over to her friend's ear and whispered the rest conspiratorially, and Mizore's smile turned positively evil.

"Have I told you you're a genius lately?"

She beamed. "No, but I _love_ hearing it!"

…

**Author's Notes:** Well, that took forever! Sorry everyone, but as I told jjs31692, my life's been really hectic lately, and now when I've finally gotten rid of one of the issues hindering my process, I'm hit with another one. So, just to let you know, twenty page chapters I have no problem with, but I was getting close to thirty and still not where I wanted to be yet, so I thought I'd better break it up before I make you all wait too long. Still, with what some people consider chapters, this is still pretty long, LOL! Don't worry, the next one should be up in a timely fashion considering I've already got a good start on it, but we all know what likes to happen when we think we have things down…

It would be a good time to ask about Rei's name as well. I thought it was pretty funny myself, because in one of my other stories I have a character named Asuka. I don't even like Evangelion all that much, but I like their names I guess. It's funny because I wasn't about to name her cutie or anything like that, but the meaning of Rei was almost the same anyway. I really tried to find a drink, but wow, you have no idea how hard that was. The closest I got was Reishu, which added to the funny, LOL!

I'm super hyped about all the reviews I've been getting, so I hope this one meets everyone's standards. I know not a lot happened in this chapter, but I would still appreciate everyone telling me what they think. Don't worry, the next chapter will have much more…of everything, that I promise. This was supposed to be a buildup, but it turned into a chapter on its own. I hope you like it, and again, I'm sorry I took so long!


	11. To Love a Vampire, Black & White Edition

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Rosario+Vampire, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story. Simple enough, ne? Just don't copy from this story and we're all good!

**Friendly warning: yes, this chapter contains lemon, and lots of it. You've been warned.**

.

**To Love a Vampire, Black and White Edition**

**.**

It was official, he was back on Fate's 'To Screw With' list, that was the only explanation.

Three weeks ago he had been on Cloud Nine, which mostly had to do with the physical expression of love that had taken place between him and the temptress that had haunted his dreams. Even the next week after that hadn't been so bad—with the expulsion of an increase in sexual tension between himself and the others—and of all things he found himself with a Familiar! Then, _then_ things started going straight to hell.

Rei was amazing, there was no denying that. She was a _dragon_, and he wasn't about to say he had never found them fascinating before. He might not be the biggest reader, but fiction was better than non-fiction any day. However, all of the downsides of having kids were being pointed out one after another, and in quick succession if he was being completely honest. Admittedly, infants wouldn't be able to follow him everywhere—like she could—and they could only voice their displeasure through crying—which she did, in her own way—but they _could_ certainly kill any kind of intimacy really, really, quickly.

The first four days after she had hatched she had been a noticeable hindrance, something both Mizore and Kurumu hadn't taken too kindly to. Kokoa was conspicuously absent most of the time, which didn't make him feel any better. He didn't like thinking he had offended her. Because of his newfound responsibilities, the time he could spend with Moka became a lot less as well, and all in all his relationships were suffering. They were able to see each other at club, and he generally saw one of his two trainers for a couple of hours every day, but then things had gotten unusual.

Over the past week Kurumu and Mizore had…changed. The first thing he had been able to see with any degree of infallibility was when the Snow Woman had shown up for his lesson, wearing matching spandex shorts to the top she always wore under her sweater, _without_ the sweater. It might have been normal workout clothes for most everyone else, but he had _never_ seen her wear something like that. The closest thing he could think of was the bikini in Second Year, and maybe the Newspaper Club's unofficial cheerleading uniforms. Thinking of those certainly didn't help his mental state, to say the least. After recovering from the nearly debilitating nosebleed, their lesson had advanced from there.

Then the brushes had started. While teaching him to mold the ice to his will, she had apparently decided to change to the hands-on approach. When her soft hands encompassed his, slowly gesturing them into the shapes she wanted him to create, he was sure he could hear his heart pounding in his ears. For how cold her hands usually were, there was only one rationalization for why it felt like he was burning up where his hands met hers. It wasn't just his hands either, she would find some excuse to accidentally touch him, and the ones that threw him off the most were during their sparring sessions. Executing a roundhouse kick became significantly more complicated when his crotch was _innocently_ caressed.

It didn't stop there. His lessons with Kurumu took a turn too. Layers of clothing would be removed under the excuse of it being 'too hot,' and Tsukune would be given a full view of an ever increasing amount of flesh. She was much bolder with her advances, and stopped being annoyed at Rei's constant interruptions. As a matter of fact, they both did.

And Rei, well, she had grown even more the second week, and was now the size of horse, and twice as thick. She couldn't even fit in his door anymore, which had been dealt with for the time being by having her sleep on the roof. A couple of nights he had even joined her up there; she was plenty warm after all, and she always seemed to know if there were going to be any changes in the weather. With that had come a serious problem, one he was currently on his way to the headmaster to talk about. He had plenty of other _serious_ problems, but this was one that stopped him from being able to take care of the others.

Ruby smiled brightly when she saw him come in, and threw her arms around his neck in a fierce hug. He laughed as he squeezed her back, and they parted with a chaste kiss. With the time they could spend alone becoming fewer and farther between, they took what they could get. In fact, he was amazed they were so comfortable kissing each other, all things considered. It might not have been as far as some of them wanted, but not everything had been completely terrible over the past two weeks Rei had been there.

"Welcome, Tsukune-san! This is a surprise!"

Before she could continue he had silenced her with another soft kiss. "Ruby?"

"Yes?" she squeaked as she colored in embarrassment.

"We've talked about this."

Her blush darkened. "T-Tsukune."

He smiled warmly. "That's better."

"You really make me want to forget again every time."

"I pretty much said the same thing to Moka. Great incentive though, isn't it?"

The witch licked her lips with a devious smirk. "I don't know, could you remind me again?"

There was only one response to that.

"**Now now, no PDA in the headmaster's office."**

They practically jumped apart, both sporting a healthy shade of red on their cheeks. The man's sense of timing was almost as good as Kurumu's, but for a completely different purpose. Under Tsukune's baleful glare, the Exorcist laughed heartily.

"**To what do I owe the pleasure? Something wrong with your rosary again?"**

_Nothing that hasn't happened before,_ he thought sarcastically, but that wasn't the reason he had come. "No, it's about Rei-chan this time. You must know how big she's gotten! I don't know what to do with her anymore. I mean, I don't mind her sleeping on the roof, but I worry about her getting enough to eat now!"

The headmaster nodded understandingly. **"Ah, I was waiting for this to happen. Now that she's big enough to not be mistaken for food for the other predators, I think it's time she go back to Paradise."**

Tsukune almost choked. "What! You can't be serious!"

"**Of course I'm serious. She needed time to get to know you and grow, but now she needs to get back in touch with her instincts. How do you think all those rare monsters survive Paradise together? They don't eat each other, I can assure you. She will have plenty of deer and the like from the human world to prey upon."**

"Then why didn't we just keep her there in the first place!"

"**Did you not hear me?"** he asked sarcastically. **"She's not just another monster, she's your Familiar. Had she not gained some of your traits through your bond she would have been far less friendly initially, but moreover she needed the time to grow. To you it might look like she's been growing like a weed, but this is normal. Dragons have fierce survival instincts, it's been wired into them to get large fast because they don't stay in the nest for very long. While they're there however, they have the protection of their mother, and that's not to be taken lightly. She, on the other hand, has a partner: you. Familiar contracts trump family in that sense. If you had just left her there, things could have gone very badly. Now that she's big enough to hunt on her own, I suggest you let her do that. Paradise will be the best place for her until, or if, her other talents develop. No monster there would dare attack her now."**

"That…makes sense, I guess," Tsukune admitted grudgingly. "I might have wanted her gone a few times over the past couple weeks, but for her to just…so soon…"

The Exorcist patted him on the shoulder. **"A Familiar may be an asset in many aspects, but they are also their own person—metaphorically speaking. I'm sure she's developed enough by now to know when you're safe and where you are without difficulty. If all goes well, her urge to see you after separation may even spark her dormant powers. She hasn't had any occasion to use any of her gifts, but let her survive on her own for a little while and she may grow more than you think."**

"Alright, alright, I get it. Still feels like I'm letting a two-week-old into a den of lions."

That creepy grin he had seen so many times before came right back. **"Think of it this way: in the den of lions you're sending her into, she's the only true predator among them."**

Tsukune grinned, and his extended fangs caught the light menacingly. "That does sound better."

The Dark Lord almost shook his head in disbelief. _The influence of both wholly vampiric blood and a dragon Familiar and this is only as far as he's changed. He changes _them_ more than they change him. Tsukune-kun…sometimes you scare me._

"Well, I'd better go get her. She would have come in with me, but she couldn't fit through the door!"

"**And how do you plan to do that?"** His answer came in the form of an opened window and an ear-splitting whistle. Soon after a deep, yet somehow delighted growl answered that, and a shining silver-white dragon was circling the tower before landing on one of the opposing structures.

"These fangs make whistling a breeze!"

_Yes, I hear they're good for biting people too. Still, to think she's already flying…_ With a look at the fine specimen of a dragon looking expectantly over at him, he smiled. **"Good afternoon, Rei-chan, I've heard a lot about you."**

The dragon snorted before looking past him to the brown-haired young man beside him, and Tsukune laughed. "Relax, Rei-chan, you're going to get me expelled at this rate!"

Steel gray met the strange glow that seemed to shine from the headmaster's eyes, and eventually the Familiar shrugged her head apathetically. The Dark Lord couldn't help but think he had just passed some kind of test, even in view of his status as it was. _A true dragon through and through; Tsukune-kun, you have no idea how lucky you are._

"You think she'll be able to fit through to where you've got the door to Paradise?"

"**The door to Paradise itself is more of a locked portal, so no matter how large she becomes she would still be able to fit through it. You're right on the other account; she might not be able to fit through the hall leading to it if she gets any bigger, but with any luck it shouldn't be a problem."** Inwardly he amended, _With _your_ luck anyway._

"Sounds good," the young vampire said. "Hear that, Rei-chan? I'll meet you on the ground!" She nodded, and took off from the other rooftop to begin her descent to the doors. Tsukune rubbed the back of his head as he looked over at the headmaster again. "It's only been two weeks, but I get the feeling she would talk to me if she could! I never expected her to be so smart!"

The Exorcist chuckled. **"My young friend, you have **_**no**_** idea."**

He let him wonder what he meant by that as he started for the path to the monster's paradise.

…

It was a sight indeed to watch the silver dragon just barely scrape her way into the large area that held the dimensional anomaly. When they all entered the realm however, Rei instantly spread her wings and charged forward, crowing in delight.

Tsukune smiled whimsically as he watched his friend and partner take to the skies. "With all the dead trees and whatnot at the school, I guess it would feel good to be in a place where nature's thrived without any interference."

Ruby inconspicuously wound her hand into his as she smiled right back. "You're really starting to sound like a proper wizard. I knew giving you more of my blood would be a good thing."

He laughed. "More like an 'essential' thing, but hey, that's just a technicality." She punched him in the shoulder for that, and he rubbed the marked spot with mock pain on his face, which only caused her to giggle.

"**Tell me, have you tried riding her yet?"**

The fledgling vampire coughed hoarsely as he turned to the source of the voice, his face an unhealthy shade of crimson. "E-Excuse me?"

The priestly man merely pointed to the sky. **"Your Familiar: have you tried riding her yet?"**

Calmed by that clarification, Tsukune cleared his throat in relief while Ruby was doing her best to match her namesake beside him. "N-No, I haven't. I know she's bigger than me now, but I don't want to put that strain on her. I have to admit, it would feel like I'm just…using her…if I rode on her back."

"Tsukune, a Familiar relationship is a two-way street," Ruby began sympathetically. "So far you've cared for her, kept her safe, and been there for her. She wouldn't see it as you using her at all. Trust me, when she gets older, or when you get more attuned to nature, you'll understand what I mean." She could see comprehension light in his eyes just as Rei circled back around.

"Wait, you mean you can unders—!" Whatever else he might have used to complete that sentence was replaced with a rather unmanly scream as his Familiar dropped from the sky and picked him up in one fell swoop.

Both remaining members on the ground laughed. **"It would seem he wasn't given a choice in the matter."**

"Seems to happen to him a lot."

The headmaster and his aide looked at each other for a moment, then simultaneously chuckled.

Naturally, the other person that had been on the ground with them was far from laughing. Screaming would be a closer description. He had flown before, in a sense, but both Ruby and Kurumu couldn't get very much speed with people in tow, and gaining altitude was a slow-going process. With Rei it was effortless, and as the trees blurred into green mush below him he clasped harder to her paw. He recognized her raspy breathing as laughter, and glared as hard as he could up at her. In response she simply slowed as she lowered her head and tossed him up, and before he was even done screaming he was seated securely where her neck met her torso.

"What the hell do you think you're doing!" he screeched in fright. "You could have—oh wow…"

Paradise stretched out below him, as far as the eye could see. For such an unnatural place it was astonishingly beautiful, and even the planets glowing in the sky seemed perfect for where they were set. From their altitude it was like the diversity of Paradise never ended, a true masterpiece of multiple environments that fit seamlessly together to form a dimension that earned its name well. Wind pushed his long hair back forcefully, but the temperate climate allowed no chill. Everything was so…alive, it made him feel lightheaded. It was like he could feel the entire land from where he was, whispering it's welcome to both him and Rei. It was like what he could feel when he was still full of Ruby's blood, only a hundred times stronger. It was _magnificent_.

"Is this because of you? Is this what it's like for you?" he breathed in wonder, and even past the rushing winds he knew she had heard and understood him. She looked back at him, and in her intelligent eyes he knew the answer. "Wow…" The feeling of flying was unlike anything he could describe, and that was when he finally joined in with the others on the ground and started laughing. "This is incredible! Come on, Rei-chan, show me what you can do!"

She growled her agreement happily, and soon they were falling from the sky in a near free-fall that had Tsukune holding on for dear life and howling in excitement. Pulling up in a tight spiral, he was nearly thrown from her back, but by that time the adrenaline rush was so severe he could only scream victoriously. Up and down, left and right; the most maneuverable aircraft in the world had nothing on his Familiar. He felt the ripple of her powerful muscles under his legs as he held on tight, the pull of gravity as she executed turns and dips that seemed to make his organs rearrange themselves accordingly, and the sheer euphoria of having the wind slice around him as she demonstrated her ability in the sky.

Monsters retreated when she drew close to the ground, and just like he had thought, the whole place was teeming with life, just not the human kind. When she at last returned to where Ruby and the headmaster had remained, any fear he might have ever had of flying had been eternally destroyed. He was still laughing and shouting as she jogged to a stop, and he was left gasping for breath as he waited for the world to stop spinning around him. When he tried to get off her back he fell gracelessly to the ground, but that only had him laughing again as he was sprawled out on the ground.

"Sweet mother of all things holy…Ruby, you have to try that sometime!" The woman in question merely smiled as she moved to help him up, and he stumbled uncertainly before clasping to her for stability. "Whoa, trippy…"

She laughed. "Looks like you need to get your land legs back."

"Sure. Makes me wonder what legs I've got on right now, but sure."

"You goof, maybe next time you'll wait 'til you can see straight before you try standing up!"

"But it was such a rush! It was just…wow! Wow!"

"See? I don't think you were much of a burden to her, do you?"

He looked over at the large reptile virtually beaming with pride and shook his head. "I'll never doubt you again. I hope we'll get to talk to each other soon," he said to her, and she nodded before he reached over to hug her neck. "You've shown me you like it here, so I feel much better now. I'll come visit as much as I can, alright?" With another nod, she had soon taken off again, to go explore her new home.

Ruby placed her hand on his shoulder comfortingly. "She's beautiful."

He put one of his hands over hers before moving to kiss it gently. "So are you. I just didn't think she'd be so accepting."

"**She's a dragon, this place is much more suitable for her, and she knows that. Though she might want to stay by you, she knows that she would be nothing but a burden as things are. Dragons don't stay as your definition of 'children' for very long. Besides, it would be hard to keep her fed with only our cafeteria leftovers."** He laughed, and the young vampire joined him. It was true after all. **"And as for you visiting…I have a proposition for you…"**

Just as the other time something had been offered to a vampire, one of Tsukune's eyebrows rose up questioningly.

.

V^^^V

.

Kurumo Kurono was walking on air. Well, not literally, but she was so pleased with herself she might as well have been. Her plans had been working perfectly, and that was something that never happened. _Tsukune's luck must be rubbing off on me or something,_ she thought happily, and her mind quickly detoured to a more perverted part of her psyche when she realized what else that could mean. She giggled slyly. _With any luck, that'll be happening soon too._

Her plan was simple. The tension between them and Tsukune was getting to be unbearable, and the lack of continuance because of Rei was wearing on their already frayed nerves. The easiest solution then was just to take themselves out of the equation. If they teased Tsukune _knowingly_, and were prepared for interruptions, then there would only be one person leaving the situation frazzled: Tsukune. He was his own biggest obstacle, and they knew from experience his patience was not something to be underestimated. Their newest task involved slowly but surely chipping away at that waning self-control, and it was working like a charm.

The situation itself was almost directly because of his new Familiar, which made any initiative on their part hard to instigate, but since she was _his_ Familiar, they certainly couldn't be blamed if _he_ was the one to start something, now could they? Being that only he had the power to send her away, it really was the perfect plan. Of course, cold showers had become a norm over the course of such a plan, but having a Snow Woman as a best friend came in handy every now and then. How _she_ relieved the stress, she had no idea. _Hot_ showers maybe?

The point was, they were close, and she knew it. It was so much easier to have a plan in mind and things to accomplish than to stay unknowledgeable and frustrated. They had nothing against Rei—other than the obvious—but she needed to _go_ for a little while. Finding a babysitter for something the size of a horse was about as easy as it sounded, especially when she could probably _eat_ said babysitter if she wanted to, and would continue to get larger the longer time went on. Even for as large as she was, she would still seem cute, and even her interruptions too, had they not been hot and bothered already. There was no more room for argument, if they—_she_—didn't have him soon, she was going to take matters into her own hands.

She couldn't be held responsible for her actions if it came to that.

Now, if only she could _find _him! It was the weekend again, and Summer Vacation was fast approaching. To her knowledge, the Newspaper Club didn't have an outing planned this year, but knowing their beloved sensei, she _could_ spring one on them at the last minute. As Third Years, their lives were hectic with exams and post-school preparation, but she had never worried about that before, and wasn't about to start now. Her grades had improved since their whole group had started studying together more, and with a genius witch taking point as an impromptu teacher, they had all noticed a change in their academic lives. Not that she really cared, but it made her mother happy and _that_ was a good thing. There was another thing that would make her mother even happier, and she was working on that one.

She had never been overly patient, but somehow she had been able to hold out, even long enough to put a _plan_ into action yet! She was sure her mother would be more than proud of her for that one. Sadly, that patience had come to an end. Term exams were coming up, as they always did before Summer Vacation, and that meant she had a _week_ to do something with her destined one before he would undoubtedly be pulled away by the rest of their group for their studies. With two people among them in the top twenty of the entire school, it wasn't something the others were going to ignore. Her grades could sink to the center of the Earth and burn for all she cared. When intimacy with Tsukune was the other option, it was a no-brainer which one she would choose. It was time to take drastic action.

Knocking insistently on the door in front of her, it eventually opened to reveal a Snow Woman currently in the process of brushing her teeth. Her choppy hair didn't look the least bit out of place even though it was obvious she had just woken up, and that brought unneeded irritation to the Succubus, though she had to admit she was impressed. Not bothering to greet her with the toothbrush in her mouth, Mizore simply waved her in as she went back to the small sink in her kitchenette to rinse.

Now Kurumu had been in her friend's room quite a few times, but she was never any less shocked by the sheer _tidiness_ of it every single time. The room was full of whites and blues, with puffy white marshmallow pillows and ice-blue covers over her bed, and even the soft white light of the lamps was shaded by the icicle-like draperies over them. Her preferred stripes were clear to see, but she really did have taste no one would have thought of at first glance. It could be questioned whether there was even a speck of dust in the entire place, and if she had to take a guess she would say no. She had kept her room clean out of principle, in case anything…happened…but she had never known Mizore's to be anything less than sparkling.

"We really are the black and white duet, aren't we?" Kurumu stated with an amused grin, and her friend smiled as she put away her toiletries.

"If you're talking about how some of your witchcraft experiments look like they should be paying rent and you could eat off my floor, then yes, we really are," she responded smugly, and the blue-haired woman huffed indignantly.

"Hey! I've been keeping my room clean!"

"Only because you want Tsukune to come in with you and help make it messy again."

She sputtered, though it really was no less than the truth. "So?"

"The bedroom is only one part of relationship you know."

Kurumu smiled brightly. "That's what I have you for!"

Mizore mocked offense. "Well excuse me for being trained to be a good wife. You'd think the Succubae would do something like that, but I guess batting your eyelashes and flaunting your breasts makes everything better."

The violet-eyed woman stepped back dramatically while holding a hand over her heart, which incidentally placed it over abovementioned large bosom. "Moi? Madam, you wound me!" Her eyes glittered mischievously. "We're quite proud of our butts too."

The two broke out into laughter. Their teasing had been a long-running joke between them for the longest time, and they had done it for so long it just became part of their banter. They both knew they were helping each other cover their weaknesses, and not just those on the battlefield. Mizore had been teaching Kurumu how to cook more than just instant noodles, and in return Kurumu was teaching her how to bake her infamous desserts, minus the 'extras' of course. It wouldn't do for partners of their caliber to have things between them, and though Gin was a hopeless womanizer, he was also quick to have them settle their differences before he considered training them seriously. If they didn't trust each other completely, their black and white duet would be a black and blue failure, it was just that simple. Teasing on the other hand, _that_ was a free-for-all.

"What can I help you with?" Mizore asked once they had settled down. Stalker or no, with her sleeping patterns lately she wasn't about to disregard a chance to sleep in. No alarm clock meant no dream being cut short, and they were really, _really_ good dreams. The other monster gave her a look that clearly told her what she wanted help with, and she smiled in an almost dangerous way. "So we're taking it to the next level?"

"Screw next level, we're going for a game-winning grand slam! Summer Vacation is coming up, but you never know _what_ that could mean for us, and really we've only got this next week to do something before exams start! No better time than the present!"

The ice maiden's grin stayed in place, and she stretched with a happy sigh before standing back up. "I thought you would never say that! It looked like there were a few times last week when you almost pinned him to the ground and—"

"_Anyway!_" Kurumu interrupted hastily. "The fact is I _didn't_, and if I'm really gonna push him over the edge with Rei right there, I know I'm gonna need _you_."

"Gee, nice to feel wanted," she muttered, and that time the succubus couldn't tell if her friend was mocking the hurt, or if it was actually real. That didn't sit well with her at all.

"Hey, I'm sorry, that didn't come out right," the illusion mistress lamented honestly as she tried to meet her wandering gaze. Finally she grabbed her shoulders and forced her blue eyes to meet her own of violet. "Honest, I didn't mean it like that. You know I'd never think of you as something to be used."

"Sure sounded like it…"

The other woman laughed as she hugged her friend. "You could never be something like that to me!"

A purple eyebrow quirked upwards, and she would never say she enjoyed the heat seeping into her from the embrace. It reminded her of Tsukune, but it was different at the same time. "So does that mean I'm one of your 'backup lovers' like your mom said?" she asked mirthfully, and that caused Kurumu to laugh harder. When she stopped though, Mizore was shocked by the sincerity in her best friend's features.

"Even before Tsukune turned I started thinking of it, but now I can't help but think that I wasn't looking at what I was taught right. Just because there's one meeting destined to happen doesn't mean that's the _only_ meeting destined to happen. We were both drawn to Tsukune, and because of that we met too. I think I met my true family when I was fifteen, and I've only started realizing it now. Tsukune turning was just the last piece that needed to fall into place. You could never be one of my 'backup lovers'," she said with a grin, "because I'd never think of you as anything less than a _real_ lover."

The Snow Woman's cheeks flared with color, and she looked away in embarrassment. "Sh-Sheesh, y-you're certainly…open."

Kurumu smiled brightly. "Nope! I'm just honest with my feelings! I _am_ a Succubus after all!"

"…You're not going to let go of me until I say something, are you?"

Another grin came, along with another, "Nope!"

Mizore rolled her eyes, but she smiled back. "So what happens if I said I didn't mind?"

The grin became absolutely voracious. "Then the kiddy gloves come off for real, and we go and blow our destined one's mind. Plus, we get to beat Yukari to her dream. Win-win I say."

She thought about that for a second. "You mean you want Moka to join us?"

Kurumu almost tripped standing still, and holding someone no less. "No!" A moment or two after that though her face turned thoughtful, and Mizore tried to keep her eyes from widening. It had been meant as a joke, but now that she thought about it… "Well, not yet anyway. She's had her turn, this time she gets to be the one to hear the stories!"

"I can live with that. Makes me wonder what would happen if we all teamed up on him though…"

The Succubus' smile was downright evil. "If? There's no 'if'. _When_."

"I think I'm really going to enjoy the rest of my life."

And she knew she would. She would never be alone, never again. She had too many people who loved her for that to happen, and she loved them all in return. It really was amazing how her life had turned out, and she wouldn't change a single second of it, not if it meant changing what was happening now. The Snow People had always preferred looking to the future rather than the past, and she liked what she was seeing in hers.

.

V^^^V

.

Rei had only been gone a few hours and yet in his mind it felt so much longer. Two weeks ago he had been used to being alone after school—or as alone as he could get after club activities and whatever else he had up that day—but then she had hatched and every waking moment was consumed with whether or not she needed anything. He was still able to handle most of what he had done before, but 'free time' became something scarce. Not that he would have minded, and he didn't really, but he did have to say he had become somewhat annoyed.

Okay, he was more than annoyed, he was so frustrated his frustration was frustrated! It wasn't her fault, she was a baby for crying out loud, but she had the worst timing he could have ever imagined. Not even the Exorcist and his frequently misinterpreted comments were as bad as her! She was amazing, he wasn't going to deny that, but being so close,_ so close_, to his loved ones and only being able to do so much before she stepped in was absolute torture! Even someone like him could only hold back so much.

Actually, now that he thought about it, having her gone for a little while might not be such a bad thing. _Wow, that sounded really, really, bad. I guess selflessness only goes so far._ He loved her, she was an irreplaceable part of his life even two weeks after she had come into it, but did it ever feel nice to have some time to himself. He hoped it didn't sound as bad as he thought it did.

As much as Ruby wanted to stay with him after they were done dropping off Rei, she wasn't a student, she had a job, she had responsibilities. Working a few weekends was part of the deal. Not that it was a bad deal by any sense of the word; not only did she get free room and board, but she also got great training for anything and everything and even a paycheck, however meager _that_ may be. He might even be jealous, that was if he didn't know firsthand what it was like to be one of the headmaster's worker monkeys. He wouldn't wish that job on anyone, and too bad for him, he had a pretty large debt to pay. It was only a matter of time before he started calling in favors.

_Yippee, I wonder what he'll have me do this time?_ he thought sarcastically. _Maybe he'll just come straight out and say, 'hey Tsukune, I want you to go jump in a lake then face Godzilla, or maybe do both at the same time! No biggie for you, right? You'll be fine!'_ If he wasn't a Dark Lord, and if he didn't hold the power to expel him on a whim, he would be sorely tempted to smash the man's face in. Since that wasn't a possibility, no matter how enticing the idea might be, the only question left was what to do with all his newfound free time?

Yeah right.

Now, if only he could _find_ her! When their Youki wasn't agitated it wasn't easy to figure out where any of his friends could be, and he had already checked all their usual haunts. The only place left to look was the dorm, and he thought it best he stay away from there—though taking the time into consideration, it _would_ be their most likely whereabouts. He wanted to go of course, but he didn't know if he could trust himself, especially if any of them happened to be alone. If he ran into Moka…he shook his head vigorously; those thoughts weren't helping his situation. It was to the point where one of Inner Moka's training sessions would be _gladly_ taken, _anything_ to get his mind out of where it had been for the past two weeks.

His spine tingled in a very familiar way, and he couldn't restrain the smile. Looking for them was so much easier when they came to him instead. He turned around, still grinning, when he saw a flash of purple slip behind one of the trees in front of him._ Come out, come out, wherever you are…_

Carefully tiptoeing towards her hiding place, he lunged around, pinning his arms to the sides to block off any retreat, and lo and behold, stuck between his outstretched arms was a wide-eyed Mizore Shirayuki. "Peek-a-boo, I see you."

She smirked slyly as she popped the candy out of her mouth, uncaring in the least of the fact that she was a walking meal to the bloodsucker in front of her. If anything, she was eyeing his fangs just as hungrily as everything else. "Oh no, whatever shall I do?"

The setting sun behind him cast a bright outline around his darkened features. "I can think of a few things…"

Her smirk lengthened. "Do tell…"

"Oh I plan to," he promised breathily, and she giggled as their faces neared. It had become so easy to kiss them, to show them how much they meant to him, and yet every time it never lost any of its spark. There was something different this time, and that was the near indomitable fire that had taken residence in Tsukune's being. It was hard enough to hold back when he was normal, or as normal as he got nowadays, but it was something else entirely when he was pushed to the limits of his self-control. He had been pushed past that limit days ago, he was holding out on sheer force of will and what he could only assume was divine intervention. It was more like draconic interruption though, come to think of it. With that gone, there was nothing left to hold him back.

Mizore had but a second to realize these things before she was pressed against the tree harder than before, trapped in an inferno of lust and love screaming to break free. His kiss was fire and ice, setting her body aflame just as it sent shivers through her skin. She barely had time to moan as he dominated her mouth, coaxed things from her body even she didn't know she had. Melting was the farthest thing from her mind, right then the delicious heat he had burning through her was something she never wanted to end. He was meshed against her, passionately molding her soft curves to his body while he tried to take the very air from her lungs, and she relinquished it willingly, just so long as she could take his as well, and she tried her best to do that.

There was no will to fight left in her, she had wanted this for so long she couldn't remember why she had even bothered to hold back. Why _had_ she bothered to hold back for so long? Wait, why wasn't she being interrupted? Wasn't this the time where things started getting out of hand and right to where she wanted? Wasn't this where they were so close to finding a bed that his silver-scaled menace found it fit to butt in? More important than that—which was highly surprising considering her position—why couldn't she shake the feeling that she was forgetting something?

A strange sound caught his attention and he ignored it, which turned out to be the wrong thing to do, for Tsukune was forced to stop when razor-sharp nails were set against his neck from behind. If holding back from his baser urges was hard, not turning whoever had hindered their progress—yet _again_—into a fine paste on the ground was even harder. Turning his senses inward, he didn't know _what_ to be when he figured out he knew who was behind him.

"Starting the party without me? Here I thought Snow Women were known for their composure."

Said Snow Woman simply glared at her. _I knew I forgot about something._

"Kurumu," Tsukune began softly as he kept his eyes focused on the tree trunk and willed his body to calm down. The hands that had been on Mizore's waist had been moved to the wood behind her, and they were quickly constricting, _anything_ to get his mind off what had just happened, what he had just been stopped from doing. "I am _not_ in the mood." That was punctuated rather aptly with the resounding _crack_ of wood under his fingers.

The nails retracted, but she didn't stop hovering at his back. He was a good deal taller than her, so she couldn't threaten him convincingly unless she was at his height. Instead, now she slowly, ever so softly kissed his neck, and the shudders that created rocked through his entire body. "That won't do," she whispered heatedly as her tail wagged behind her. "We _want_ you in the mood."

While his mind was sent on the tangent the 'we' in that remark produced, Mizore went back to her task of reminding him who he was still pressed against. A groan came from deep in the back of his throat when the blue-eyed beauty shifted into him, moving her pelvis more insistently into his, and doing a very good job of keeping his brain from any kind of higher functions. Kurumu's nimble fingers were trailing over chest, and then one of her hands snaked up his shirt to caress his bare flesh unhindered. Floating as she was, she had unrestricted access to her destined one, and Tsukune's blood boiled inside of him as he was flanked by the two attractive women.

"M-Mizore…Kurumu…"

The two in question felt a jolt of pleasure jump through them as their names were hissed from between clenched teeth, and the husky, tortured tone stoked the flames of passion higher in their repressed bodies.

"We should really—" Afraid the next word out of his mouth would be 'stop', the ice maiden still pinned to the tree grabbed his face and yanked his mouth to hers. Whatever word it might have been was drowned in a gurgled moan as she fought her tongue through his lips and did things to his he once thought anatomically impossible. Where she learned how to do it he had absolutely no idea.

Kurumu smirked into her kisses as she made her way down his neck, fighting off her own arousal. Just listening to her soon-to-be lovers was more than enough to make her sex throb, and her nature was getting harder and harder to ignore. Her hand trailed down his chest, over the hard muscles of his abdomen and to his waistline, where she felt the proof of his own arousal growing by the minute. His strangled gasp when she squeezed almost made her whimper, and in the back of her mind she was reminded of her irritation that Moka had gotten him first. She was having trouble minding though, with the current circumstances taken into account.

The grope to his manhood shocked him into some sense of rationality before it was completely taken over by lust, and with a positively agonized groan he shook the succubus from his back as he shrugged loose Mizore's grip on him. "Really, we need to—"

"Please don't say stop," the water mistress pleaded as she leaned her head into his chest. "I've…we've…waited so long for this…please don't say st—" This time it was he who cut _her_ off by forcefully plundering her mouth, and she moaned in gratitude of the welcome interruption before he pulled away.

"Just let me _finish,_" he hissed. "I've wanted this for _weeks_. I haven't had a decent night's rest since you came out in that spandex outfit, and right now I'm seriously debating ripping off your skirt and taking you right against this tree." Her breath hitched, and so did Kurumu's. Their plan had worked better than they ever could have hoped, because Tsukune would probably faint from blood loss any other time such words were even said around him, let alone he being the one to say them personally. "Rei-chan's going to be living in Paradise for a while, so there's no chance of being stopped by her, _but_, as much as I want to, _god_ do I ever want to, we're right in the middle of school grounds." He took a deep breath and ran a hand through his shaggy hair, trying desperately to regain some modicum of his rapidly failing composure. "So what I was saying was: we really need to take this somewhere else, because if we go any farther I'm really going to _snap_."

The way he said 'snap' made them both shiver, and it was all Kurumu could do not whine in entreaty, call him to her in an inescapable charm and have him ravish her until she couldn't walk. The tone of his voice suggested she wouldn't need to charm him for that to happen however, and she smiled devilishly as she retook her human form and grabbed her love-interests' hands.

"I've been working on something for just such an occasion. My room it is."

…

Few words were capable of describing what was going through Tsukune Aono's mind as he and his equally frustrated love's made their way to Kurumu's room, but whatever happened along the way allowed the young man some minor cognitive abilities. It was too bad they made it to her dorm before those processes could be fully initialized again, because they were squashed in an instant under the Snow Woman's sudden assault once the door was closed. Their shoes were lost somewhere in the fray, and with that taken care of they were back at each other.

The succubus smirked when the two bodies of her would-be lovers assisted in shutting the door, and she locked it quickly before swiping the piece of chalk she had stored on the desk nearby and completing the charm array beside it. With a slight chant and a minor infusion of Youki, the markings shimmered before she felt the effect take hold. Occupied as he was, Tsukune still felt the pulse of magic coat the room, and with great effort he managed to pull himself away from Mizore to voice his curiosity.

Naturally, the smirk merely widened on the bluette when the question was asked. She knew he was going to like the answer, and with a flick of her hand the blinds had been drawn. "It's a small barrier charm Ruby's been teaching me. This room is now completely soundproofed."

Those caramel orbs she loved looking into deepened to an almost molten gold, and before thought had too much time to rear its unwelcome head, he had pulled her to him and possessed her lips in a scorching kiss that had her knees shaking. She could practically taste the cold of her duet partner on his mouth, and the thought that there was another person in the room with them sent a shrill of excitement through her.

She had wanted him for so long, almost so long she couldn't remember a time where she hadn't. It seemed like a lifetime ago now that she had been an inexperienced little girl who thought love was begot from how many mindless drones she had catering to her every whim. It was a flawed plan, as she could now see, but in some unexplainable twist of fate it had still managed to serve its purpose. Had the jealousy not taken hold because of that plan's supposed failure, she would never have met the man who would become more than anything she could have ever hoped for in a mate.

There was no desire to fight the fire burning through her veins; no more would she have to crush that gluttonous urge that ran deep into her very ancestry with cold water or self-inflicted release. No, now she could finally be with the one she loved, with another she loved just as much. She was a Succubus, she thrived on the physical expression of softer emotions. She longed to be touched, to feel his hands slide over her bare skin, to feel him within her as only he could. It was a very real actuality that some succubae chose their destined one from physical compatibility alone, and they enjoyed each and every trial to find that one. Her mother hadn't been kidding when she had said she was more innocent than any of them gave her credit for, and as a succubus not having experience in the realm of carnal pleasure by her age wasn't necessarily a good thing.

But as she felt his hands glide over her sides, touch her so gently it felt like her skin was going to snap over her muscles trying to feel more, she had never been so glad she had saved herself for the one she loved. She had never seen their height difference as a bad thing, in fact she loved the many possibilities that allowed. To feel the full extent of him wrapped possessively around her was something no word could accurately portray. The bulge of his arousal pressing into her only fanned the flames hotter, and she reveled in the shivers running through him as she and Mizore's hands explored his body zealously. Even when she had almost violated him in their first year, his body hadn't responded to her advances. Now it couldn't respond enough.

A husky groan rumbled through his chest as Kurumu's hot hands wandered up his shirt, just as their partner's conversely cold ones caressed the muscles of his back. Tsukune's body didn't know what input it should listen to, but combined it was driving him gloriously insane. Taking just one second from his exploration of his violet-eyed lover, he pulled the polo shirt over his head and tossed it to the side. Two sets of eyes noticeably darkened when his scarred, chiseled torso was bared to their inspection, but the illusionist was cut short when his hand slid to the back of her neck and suddenly she was kissing him again.

Though peeved Moka had taken his first, she wasn't about to deny the skill the encounter had left him with, and she was the one to bask in that wonderful ability as he coerced mewls and moans from her body with loving talent. Tremors shook her spine as his fingers threaded into her hair and massaged her scalp, and before she knew it her hair-band had been unclipped and her cerulean locks were left to flow down her head unchecked. It was a rare sight, one Tsukune wasn't about to squander. Pulling away from her, he smiled softly as she fidgeted under his gaze. Her hair was longer than it looked, and it flowed past her shoulders when free of constraint, framing her face with an amazing sapphire waterfall.

"Beautiful," he whispered reverently.

Even pushed far beyond what any man should have to endure, he still took his time, and she had to say, seeing Mizore embracing him lovingly from behind and looking at her with the same amount of admiration was no small boost to both her ego and her arousal. The Snow Woman must really have ice in her veins to be able to hold off as much as she had, and Kurumu's eyes expressed how thankful she was for that. Mizore simply smiled as she spied the look in her friend's eyes, and the smile spoke all too clearly that she knew she would get just as good as her when it was her turn.

"I'm wearing too much clothing, aren't I?" Kurumu murmured seductively, and slowly began to undo the buttons to her shirt. Before she was even two buttons down, tanned hands stopped her, and she looked up to Tsukune in confusion, only to tremble when she saw his expression.

"Please, allow me."

Her womanhood throbbed at his tone, and she could only nod wordlessly as she tried to wet her abruptly dry mouth. Their violet-haired companion, who had been content to examine her love-interest for the most part, gracefully stepped out from behind him, tenderly running her feminine fingers over his arm as she virtually flowed from one space to the next. Slipping behind _her_ now, the succubus' skin tightened further as cold arms wrapped around her waist.

"M-Mizore…?"

The woman in question quietly placed a finger over her lips as she shook her head, and her eyes fluttered. "This is your turn. We're here for you, we're here for me, we're here for him. It can't have been easy to fight against your love and your nature for so long; now we're going to fix that."

Tears stung her eyes, and there was nothing left to restrain their fall. She couldn't believe she had thought her partner hadn't noticed her plight, any more than the usual, and she nodded gratefully. Though Tsukune looked lovably clueless, he figured out what she meant fast enough, and his look softened. "I'm sorry I took so long."

"Don't be," she responded happily, caught between two of the people she loved. "The only things of any value are what you have to wait for."

She shuddered when her buttons resumed being unfastened, and not about to stay immobile, he began kissing down the flesh that was exposed. Warm lips set blazing trails over the bumps of her large breasts, and the amazingly erotic, cold yet hot counterparts of her blue-eyed lover did the same to her back, kissing the soft, perfect skin of the small body with soft worship. The shirt was eventually shrugged from her, and she shook when those same cold kisses were gently marked down her shoulder-blades. Her lacy bra was removed by her dexterous hands, and Kurumu felt more than saw Tsukune stiffen in his trek down her body.

He swallowed heavily when he saw the succubus as topless as he was, and his erection ached. The only words he could mutter were, "I can't believe this is happening…"

That just made Kurumu smirk through her haze of bliss, and with a quick movement of her fingers his pants were undone. "You'd better."

Snapped from his stare by the motion, he removed the article with gratitude, eager to alleviate the confines around his throbbing sex. His boxers were far more comfortable in that respect, though not nearly comfortable enough. He wasn't quite ready to remove them yet though; he still had someone else to attend to.

Lightning crackled her nerves when Tsukune's kisses returned to the flesh once covered, and she moaned appreciatively as her breasts were finally given the attention she wanted. Her body was caught between fire an ice, each one not counteracting the other, but instead building upon them, sending her body to greater peaks of pleasure than it ever had before. Her knees rattled as her paramour lavished her hard nipples with his tongue, and she nearly buckled when his teeth closed in over one, whimpering as Mizore started placing tender kisses down the bumps of her spine while easing her hands over her lover's sides. It was too much, too much for her to handle.

Each gentle caress made her instincts burn and her arousal higher, and when Tsukune got down on his knees to keep trailing down her body, her stomach muscles quivered. It was more intense than she could have ever imagined, and she had done a lot of that. For not being necessarily erogenous, each spot they touched made her moan, every stroke of caring consolation had the same effect as a knowingly exciting touch. She noted with some part of her mind that her skirt had just been discarded, and she whined when hot hands ran down her leg, charming it upwards so he could remove her sock. She chewed her lower lip between her teeth as he kissed his way back up, and soon the process had been repeated, leaving her in nothing but her very ruined panties.

The smell of her arousal was overwhelming to Tsukune's sensitive nose, and seeing how wet his beloved was because of them was highly erotic. His heart was thundering in his chest when in a characteristic act of meekness, he hesitantly removed the soaked undergarment. The scent assaulted him stronger than before when her moist womanhood was exposed, and he inhaled hungrily. The aroma appealed to the hormone-infused instincts within, and she gasped when his mouth trailed over her trimmed blue curls before he gave his first soft lick to her weeping petals.

Her legs collapsed from under her as the sensation ripped through her, igniting all of her nerves in tandem, demanding her whole body feel that and only that. Mizore caught her on the way down, soothingly moving the nude body to lie on the carpeted floor. Kurumu didn't even have the time to say anything because she was soon panting as her male lover delved back into her, and her eyes rolled back in her head when cold lips enclosed over the hard nub of her breast while an equally cold hand massaged its twin.

Cold, hot; warm, freezing; she had no concept of temperature anymore. All she knew was her whole body was alight, thrumming with sensation, and enjoying every magnificent second of it. Her fingers twined into her Snow Woman's hair in entreaty as her legs clasped around her Vampire's head, trying desperately to encourage his journey over her slit. There was no rush, no insane break that had them ravishing each other like starved travelers at an oasis; no, all this was was slow, beautiful love. It didn't surprise her that Tsukune's idea of snapping was making sure his partner was breathless in bliss, mindless to his own pleasure, instead of the other way around.

She shrieked and bucked her hips into him when his teeth pinched her clit, and she started begging for release, for the push she needed to fall from the peak she was just barely holding on to. Her cries pressed him further, just as they sent tingles over his skin. She had no idea how her moans affected him, and it was taking everything he had left to restrain himself. His boxers were painfully uncomfortable by now, but for the moment he only wanted to focus on her. He wanted to see her reach that fall from eternity, and moved his attention solely to the top of her sex, mercilessly attacking that oversensitive bundle of nerves as he gently inserted a finger into her wet womanhood. Kurumu moaned throatily at the welcome intrusion, urging him on both vocally and physically, and the pleas didn't fall on deaf ears. Moaning her approval while on the last legs of her sanity, when a second finger was added she finally lost it.

Her hands bunched tight in her lover's purple hair as her back arched from the ground, and her transformation happened instinctively when the blinding pressure that had been building for years burst ferociously. White light was all she could see as she trembled in place, her wings shivering violently under her. She wanted to moan, scream, _something_, but no air would pass through her vocal chords in the simultaneous tightening of every muscle she had. She had had orgasms before, but even the ones brought on by his bites paled in comparison to what was going through her now.

When she came down from her high her whole body relaxed, and she slumped into the carpet in a content sprawl as she gulped in air. "Oh _wow_…"

Seeing the nude succubus in full form, sweaty and panting on the ground, wings and tail twitching of their own volition, was a sight many of the men at Youkai Academy would have sawed off their right arm with a rusty chainsaw to see. That right however was reserved for a select number of people, and two of them were taking it in admiringly. Mizore chuckled when Tsukune crawled up Kurumu's prone body to kiss her, and her violet eyes widened when she tasted herself on his lips.

Considering what she was, they shouldn't have been surprised when she licked those lips and chuckled sensuously. "Hmm, I taste pretty good actually. What a perverted vampire."

The Snow Woman reached forward and tugged his head to hers, sure to delve deep into his mouth in the heated tangle of tongues. With a similarly sensual smirk she licked her lips not unlike the charm mistress had just done. "_Our_ perverted vampire, and don't ever change." It was after that she noticed how she was the center of their interest, and her cheeks colored despite herself.

"Speaking of 'change', you have way too many clothes on," Kurumu pointed out hotly as a predatory grin stretched over her half-lidded expression. Mizore barely had the time to yelp before her sweatshirt had been discarded, but whatever sound she might have made was preemptively cut off by her blue-haired lover's lips.

Tsukune was left stunned as he watched his succubus disrobe his ice maiden over the course of a blistering kiss, and all moisture that had been in his mouth instantly disappeared. His painfully hard erection throbbed at the image, and he groaned quietly. That picture would haunt his dreams for years to come, he was sure.

They both looked over at the soft sound, and Kurumu's lustful grin came back when she spied the stiffly tented material of his boxers. "Something the matter, Tsukune?" she asked coyly as she ran a finger down the valley of Mizore's now bare breasts, and he groaned again when she visibly shivered at the touch.

"Would you think less of me if I said that is one of the hottest things I've ever seen in my life?" he responded huskily, and it was clear in his muscles how much effort it was taking to keep him from simply taking them right there.

Of course, she just smiled again. "I think we'd only think less of you if that _wasn't_ one of the hottest things you've ever seen in your life." Beside her, Mizore's eyes twinkled in amusement.

At the end of her rope, the Snow Woman finally stood. Taking off her thigh-high socks to completely bare herself before them, she reached down and pulled Tsukune to his feet, claiming his mouth possessively as she pressed her naked chest against his. The feeling of his bare skin against hers after wanting it for so long made her tingle in excitement, and despite not being the one under his talented care, she was no less aroused than her duet partner. Said partner wasn't about to be left out, and she rose smoothly to her feet to slip behind her vampire. She loved the way his sculpted chest felt under her fingertips, and from the sound of things, Mizore loved the way hers felt under his.

There was no mistaking the fire in the icy woman's eyes as she stepped back, and for some reason he felt his face heat up regardless of what they had just done. Glancing down to where his underwear was stretched, straining towards her with an unmistakable stain at the front, she grinned cattily, and that look on her normally expressionless porcelain face made him feel like cornered prey.

"Now who's the one with too many clothes on?"

Her cold hands moved to the waistband of his boxers, and were soon joined by Kurumu's with the ultimate goal of removing them from his person, which was easily accomplished. She found herself looking straight at his very hard arousal, and far from intimidated, her eyes blazed with newly heightened lust.

"I knew I made the right choice," Kurumu muttered proudly as she knelt beside her nearly salivating loved one, and Tsukune's blush darkened under her scrutiny. "Come on, big boy, it's your turn now." She pushed him to her bed, and he was so shocked by the sudden turn of events he could only heed her direction. He sat down, only to be pushed to his back with the winged monster smirking over him. Unexpectedly she grabbed the startled blue-eyed woman and pulled her to her side, and if possible he became even harder.

They were a vision from the very essence of nocturnal fantasies; that was the only way to describe them. Mizore's skin was nearly translucent, gorgeously pale even as certain parts reddened with arousal. Her body could very well have been carved from ice. Muscle tone that made her far stronger than any human would expect was hidden perfectly under supple curves, accentuating the smooth definition of her immaculately formed bust and leading to her kind blue eyes. In the growing darkness of the room, the eerie lamps their host preferred in her room made her skin shine, and once again he could only gulp heavily.

Beside her stood the very personification of carnality, one of the original seducers, the succubus Kurumu Kurono. Sweaty and flushed from climax, she looked even more beautiful than she had before, standing unashamed of her nakedness in front of him. Her every feature was meant to drive both men and women alike insane with desire, and it was indeed working. Her small stature took away nothing from her appeal, if anything it merely pronounced everything she had that much more. There was no disproportion at all on her body, even her large breasts were balanced flawlessly by her shapely curves, and the addition of her demonic attributes only served to arouse him further.

A white and black duet, two opposites that gave something nothing else could to the other in combat. There was still something missing, a void they simply couldn't fill in each other's hearts, but that had been completed by the last piece of the puzzle, currently staring at them like a mortal who knew how unworthy he was to be in their presence. He would never truly know how wrong he was, but that was part of his charm.

Emboldened by the awestruck stare, Kurumu sauntered forward, swaying her hips purposefully all the while, and watched as his eyes fought a conflicted battle on where to look. A smile briefly crossed her features. She _demanded_ attention, her entire being radiated an inescapable pull that commanded longing in its basest form. She was a succubus, and she had never been more in her element.

Not about to be ignored, Mizore padded the short distance to her love and leaned down to claim him once more. Their tongues fought for dominance in a way that had her toes curling in the carpet, and she moaned lowly into his mouth. Watching Kurumu thrash about in orgasm was close to torment with her so deprived of attention, but she planned on making that up right now. Guiding his hands to her breasts, she sighed breathily when he took the cue and started slowly massaging her chest. His large hands were capable of things she simply couldn't do on her own, and it felt positively wonderful, more so with his tongue still in her mouth. She could feel the heat pooling in her core, and for once she wanted that heat with every fiber of her existence.

A strangled gasp from Tsukune broke them apart, and he grit his teeth as he threw his head back into their host's pillow. "Oh dear _god_…" he cried lowly. The ice maiden didn't know why he had stopped so suddenly, but she got her answer when she glanced down and saw Kurumu nestled between his spread legs, softly licking his erect manhood with a smile dancing in her eyes as she gazed back up.

The unusual feeling that had shocked through his whole body made his toes numb, and when he looked down he nearly lost control right there. The succubus' warm tongue was sliding up his shaft expertly, somehow conveying the very real lack of experience that was drowned out in the skill of her base instincts.

"Kurumu…I can't…" He had been holding back for weeks, in which two of those happened to be ripe with sexual teasing and frustration that had since been bottled inside him. It felt like he was going to explode, but it felt so _good_.

His breath left him in a savage growl when her mouth enclosed over the head of his erection and slowly worked down, and Mizore resisted the almost overpowering urge to rub herself. An idea sparked behind her blue eyes, and she crawled over him, finally joining the other two on the bed. With her knees placed on either side of his head, she was left on all fours with her head right by her other lover's. A smile pulled at the lips of the mistress of illusions as she removed herself from her man, and Mizore smirked at her before leaning down and giving a long lick to the throbbing flesh in front of her.

Tsukune very nearly choked on his own saliva.

When nothing else was forthcoming, she wiggled her hips on top of him, and he got the hint fast enough. She cried out when he buried his nose in her center, and from his position every stroke of his tongue started at her aching clitoris. The overwhelming stimulation had her panting unashamedly, but she wasn't about to break her word. Sparks flew in front of her eyes while she trailed up his girth, and when she swirled her tongue around the tip his resulting moan rocked right into her womanhood. Her breath was knocked out of her as she slumped forward, engulfing inches of him into her mouth and earning another gravelly moan that rumbled through her very bones.

It felt good, so, _so_, good. She had never thought anything could feel like it, and she assaulted his sex with vigor, eager to be rewarded with pleasure of her own. She wasn't disappointed. Every moan she earned from him made his ministrations on her all the more amazing, and he had quickly come to the same conclusion. Kurumu licked the base tenderly, stoking what Mizore couldn't reach and fondling the sensitive skin held there, knowingly helping her along as she rubbed herself to ease the tension inside her. They alternated spontaneously, never giving him any warning to what they were about to do, and he all but writhed under their cooperation.

His mind had shut down, now focused solely on the incredible feelings coming from his sex. How he had even held off so long was a question for another time, but the differentiating temperatures assaulting his pleasure centers were indescribable. His body was tightening, getting ready for what it wanted so urgently, and he knew there was no holding back.

"K-Kurumu…M-Mizore…I'm…"

Said succubus took him into her mouth immediately, and with a final hiss he exploded into her. Orgasmic relief soaked every nerve, finally ridding him of the inexhaustible tension that had plagued his body for the past few agonizing weeks. Only dimly aware of what was going on, her continued motions kept his body burning. Even as that tension was drained from his body, a new fire replaced it, one that wasn't about to leave them unsatisfied. The Rosario around his neck may restrain his Youki, but it didn't restrain his vampiric regeneration, or his libido for that matter.

She hummed happily as she finally tasted her destined one, and swallowed what he gave her as quickly as she could before she was overwhelmed. She suspected it had to do with her origin as a succubus, but he tasted just right to her. Removing herself from his still hard erection as he was left panting hot air onto the Snow Woman's throbbing flower, she saw her female lover was getting close too. The lust-ridden ice maiden grabbed her head fiercely and pulled her to her lips, having been deprived the flavor herself. Kurumu had never known her to be so forceful, but she certainly wasn't complaining as what was left was taken from her.

"Tastes like Tsukune," she murmured provocatively when she pulled away, and gasped when his tongue unexpectedly entered her, diving deep into her core. He knew she hadn't climaxed yet, and he felt bad for breaking before her. He was going to make that up to her, and as she screamed her approval louder, he knew he was doing a good job.

Seeing the two go back at it, Kurumu couldn't take any more. Her womanhood ached for him; she had waited long enough. Positioning herself above his hips, she saw the realization dawn briefly in her partner's eyes. She only nodded.

"Time for the real deal, Tsukune; get ready."

She was plenty wet enough for him even with his size, but she still gasped as he pushed past her virginal folds. Tsukune groaned deeply at the new sensation, and when he pressed against her innocence she smiled contentedly. They were finally going to make love. The pain was there when she broke through it without hesitation, but she sat shivering in place, reveling in the fullness within her while her tail and wings convulsed uncontrollably. The pain was something she knew she would have to go through, it was something she was willing to experience for them to be like this.

After years of waiting, she was his at last.

The smell of blood hit his nose at the same time the awareness of her wrapping around him hit his mind, and before he could do anything to stop himself he had dug his fangs into Mizore's inner thigh, instinctively seeking out the artery he knew was there.

Her scream could have been heard from the men's dorm had they not soundproofed the room. The sheer unexpectedness of his bite was enough, but since she had been so close to release already, the sudden infusion of pleasure was more than she could take. Her climax tore through her far stronger than it would have otherwise, almost blinding her in its intensity as she bucked in place. If there was such a place as Cloud Nine she had passed it long ago, and she swore she saw the pearly gates before she fell back into her body and slumped over, wordlessly sliding off her lover, the bed, then to the carpet below in a heap.

Tsukune wanted to see if she was alright, but the second he sat up after wiping his mouth he was pleasurably reminded of who was still sitting on his lap, and that only resulted in a harsh moan from both of them before he fell to his back again.

They needn't have worried, for soon the croaked words of, "I think I just found religion…" carried up from the floor.

Kurumu grinned as she braced her hands on her lover's strong chest. The earlier movement had made her see sparks, and she wasn't about to go slow anymore. "I think she'll be fine. Now, where were we?"

She could have sworn she saw his eyes flash to the red of his true nature. With a growl that wasn't possible with human vocal chords he pulled her down to kiss her, and she moaned contently as she started rocking her hips into him. Nerves never before used sparked to life as he rubbed her deeper than anything ever had, and her fingers latched onto his shoulders for support, allowing her to rub harder than before. Her nails left crescents in his skin, but he couldn't be bothered to care as he strove to push into her harder, hastening her along with his hands securely on her waist.

He filled her so completely, hit something deep within her every time his hips met hers. To feel him beneath her fingers, to feel his digging into her hips and spurn her on with his own strength as well as her own made her lightheaded. Her instincts were singing inside her, rejoicing in the union between destined mates just as her body was. He was so vibrant, from their connection it felt like she could feel everything that he was, an endless, ever-growing ocean of power barely chained by a holy artifact. She didn't know if it was an insight brought on by the moment, or part of her abilities as a succubus, but if it was indeed real Tsukune was more powerful than any of them, save possibly Moka, had any inkling of.

Her thoughts were blasted from her mind when he leaned up, pressed her flush against him with his hand at the small of her back, and she shuddered when he started kissing her pointed ears. The strange sensation went right to her center and had her biting her lip, and the change in position, while severely restricting movement, resulted in each jolt harshly grinding her hard clit into his body. Her moans turned into high-pitched croons each time he rocked her into him, and when one of his hands reached up to start rubbing the joint of her back and her wings, she arched into him wantonly. She had never known that particular area was so sensitive, and to her delighted chagrin he attacked it with gentle caresses that had her jerking wildly on top of him.

As her sanity floated away on the waves of bliss, she felt more in touch with her powers than ever before, her heritage as a queen of the night. The magic of charms, illusions, the supernatural energy bred into her very genes thrummed, more alive that she had ever felt it. She felt…_complete_. Tsukune made her feel complete. She had no way of knowing she was crying until she felt his lips delicately press against her cheeks, and she could only smile before she claimed those lips as her own again.

The bed shifted as new weight was added, and Kurumu cooed as a cold mouth was set against the leathery flesh of her wings. Her steaming body loved the kisses of frost on it, and her breath caught when icy fingers ran carefully up her breasts. There was a distinct change this time, the cold was more prominent than normal, and as spiked ends hardened the peaks of her breasts, she knew the Snow Woman had taken her true form. She began tracing invisible designs over the succubus' abdomen, lines of cold on an otherwise burning body, and Kurumu sagged backwards under the treatment.

Now with Mizore supporting her upper body and Tsukune carrying her lower, she felt like she was floating on a cloud of sensitivity. One held her lovingly as she swam somewhere between dream and reality, and the other helped her along as they made slow, sweet love. When one of the ice maiden's long, slippery fingers teased her unused opening, her desperate motions increased, unsure whether she was trying to get away or get further stimulation from the raw nerves. The decision was made for her, and her eyes widened when she felt the odd intrusion. The combined result of the finger's chilling effect and the ignition of the previously unexploited nerve-endings in general had her pleading for more, and her lovers obliged her.

It was too much, even for her. Conflicting signals riddled her body, cold and hot, fire and ice; she was suspended between two powerful, beautiful creatures whose only goal was her pleasure. Ultimately, even sound escaped her grasp as she trembled between them, and thus could give no warning when the winding coil met its final end. Shaking in their grip with a lengthy moan, the succubus had her second orgasm of the night. If she thought the first one was intense, there was no compare to its later companion.

Tsukune gasped when her already tight sex constricted around him, quivering spasmodically in unknowable sequence that pushed him to the last of his weakening control. The eventual conclusion of their slow, careful love that relied more on absolute, immersed reactivity than the pure carnality of a brutal rush for completion spawned an explosion far greater than the last, and unwittingly he bit into the crook of her neck to muffle his cry of release.

The oversensitive succubus cried out weakly as the waves of pleasure she had been riding jumped twofold, and all she was left to do was enjoy the trip. Everything felt heightened, even feeling his climax within her made her moan, and her powers flared just as spastically as her muscles. Finally, sweet darkness took her, and she smiled as what rationale had returned to her realized what was happening.

Mizore chuckled lustfully as the body leaning against her went slack, and when Tsukune looked at her with concern in his eyes she only smirked demurely. "She fainted."

He smiled warmly, soft pride in his gaze, as he cautiously took control of her whole weight and gently laid her fully on her bed. The snow heiress had moved so he could do that, and soon he had left as well. Kurumu's peaceful breathing was the only noise in the room as a Snow Woman found herself in the arms of her love, and she relaxed into his hold as she transformed back, comfortable in the nude embrace. She was so aroused it would have been embarrassing in any other situation, but feeling his own arousal stir against her as their naked flesh pressed into each other, she knew he was far from done.

A quick intake of breath was the only indication Tsukune gave of feeling her chilly hand wrap around his erection, but the desire in their eyes was instantly recognizable. "You were hoping something like this would happen, weren't you?" he asked through a smile as he pecked her lips delightedly, and she smirked again when he lifted her up and allowed her to wrap her legs around his waist, so close and yet so far from what she wanted.

"Why do you think I let her go first?"

Soft giggles and throaty laughter echoed softly in the room as they kissed, short and playful eventually giving way to long and hungry. Her wetness rubbed slickly against his manhood with every move he made, and she squealed airily when she was placed on the desk Kurumu must have used for studying, which explained why it was empty. Mizore moaned huskily when he started laving kisses down her neck, and despite her nature she shivered.

"Oh God, Tsukune, please…no more…" she pleaded, "I need you…I can't wait any longer!"

He wanted to, he wanted to very much, but his mind chose that moment to be of use. "Shouldn't we use protection? I know Moka and Kurumu talk about it with Ruby when they think I can't hear, but you…"

Her smirk returned as she leaned over to his ear. "The other thing Ruby's been showing Kurumu how to make is a fast-acting Youkai contraceptive. We're both safe for today."

He sighed in relief before kissing her powerfully. As he pulled away he simply looked at her, affectionately running his fingers through her choppy hair. "I love you, Mizore. I want to give you kids, and I will, but can you wait until after we're done school?"

Tears glistened in her eyes as she nodded brightly. "I think I can do that. I need _you_ now though. _Right_ now." Releasing him from her grip, she braced her hands on the edge of the desk and spread her legs, baring herself to him utterly.

Tsukune's expression darkened with lust, and he took hold of her legs so her knees were resting over his elbows as he aligned himself with her moist entrance. He hissed as she started tightening around his hypersensitive flesh, and quickly hit her maidenhead. With one last look into her eyes, she only nodded lovingly, and then he was in her, encompassed completely in her formerly virginal sheath. The tears that sprung to her eyes weren't all of joy, but he would never forget the look in her clear blue irises. Though she was clearly in pain, she was happy. He had thought of biting her to ease her pain, but since he had accidentally done that once already he wasn't about to do it again so soon. Leaning the short distance towards him, she was the one to dominate his mouth as he gave her time to get used to his size.

His willpower was once again being put to the test to let her do so, because he desperately wanted to move. She was wrapped around him so tightly he was having trouble breathing, and her unique temperature added something he just couldn't describe. Even then it didn't bother him, at least not in the uncomfortable sense, but it _was_ unbearable in a whole different way. That control snapped when her cold breath hit his ear again, and in a decidedly hot nature whispered, "I'm fine, Tsukune. I need you, hard and fast. I want it so badly it hurts, I've waited long enough."

He didn't need to be told twice.

Withdrawing until only the tip was in, he plunged back forcefully, and Mizore's slim eyes went wide as the breath was shot from her lungs. Her naturally cold blood was replaced with liquid fire as her body was set ablaze under his assault, igniting nerve after glorious nerve that hummed with pleasure as he heeded her request. His powerful thrusts shook the desk she was on, but she could only moan and beg for more as his girth stretched her so magnificently each time.

Emptiness and completion, fire through ice, contradictions and opposites coming at her from every angle intensified the numbing euphoria that shocked her every time they connected and every time he pulled out. The pain was a forgotten memory as he stabbed her innermost depths with growing force, and she tried as hard as she could to push herself into him in tune to his pace. Her arms protested when she lifted her weight from the desk, but the sudden lack of friction gave him control over both his and her movements. With her legs still securely in his hold, they could both thrust into each other with as much force as their bodies allowed. With them both being high-class monsters, that was no small amount, even with him sealed.

Constantly demanding more, Tsukune wasn't about to deny her. He felt incredible, the pleasure running through his body made even breathing difficult. Her physical prowess was displayed doubtlessly as she spurned to meet him, effortlessly keeping herself up while the hard muscles of her stomach defined themselves with each roll of her hips. Her mouth gaped wide when her hands slipped and she fell into him with the force of her whole weight behind her, but it wasn't the fall that had her gasping for air. He had caught her easily, moving quickly to slip her upper body against his, and unintentionally pushing them into the deepest penetration they had ever achieved.

Her orgasm was upon her unexpectedly, and all she could do was hum joyfully as her transformed hands clawed at his back without her knowledge. For that short eternity she really was in paradise, and when her high eventually ended, she knew that the same thing hadn't happened to Tsukune. She almost protested when he started moving again, grinding deep into her over-sensitized womanhood still tingling from climax, but it felt too good to care.

It was only thanks to their earlier activities that he didn't lose it the second she started convulsing around him, and the hands scratching at the skin of his back nearly pushed him over that edge. For as sharp as they looked, they were only leaving minor marks that were gone in seconds under his regenerative capabilities, but the cold sent a delicious thrill through him. From the center of the well of indomitable might being constantly inhibited by his divine rosary, something rose to greet that power.

Mizore screamed in delight as he thrust deeper and let gravity do the rest, and yowled louder when the hands holding her started getting…colder. While normally she could tolerate his usual temperature, this felt like her own, and more importantly it felt _spectacular_. Moving a leg from his hold to stand on her own, her other leg stayed captive as he pushed in at the new angle, far harder than he was able to when he was supporting her whole weight. Their free hands sought each other out for stability, and through the haze her mind was under she noticed his entire hand, right up to his forearm, was made of _ice_. Fingers once blunt were sharpened to points in blue crystal, and the only difference between hers and his was that his had retained their natural size.

If Tsukune noticed this he didn't care, and as he hit a particularly sensitive spot inside her she didn't any longer either. A water affinity was indeed growing, and she had called it out of him. With their bodies meeting in abandon, recklessly driving towards that beautiful crescendo they desired wholeheartedly, they couldn't be bothered with anything else. In time she couldn't even stand any longer, and instead of keeping her upright, Tsukune went with her. As she collapsed to her hands and knees, he stayed behind her, and her moans renewed with the different position. Her arms had no strength left to hold herself up, so she clasped to one of the cushions on the floor and made sure he knew how much she appreciated his efforts.

He pushed into her almost brutally, but she just egged him on harder. She could feel the peak approaching, and she knew intuitively that he was close as well. His assailment was getting erratic, escalating in strength each time, until at long last she felt his warmth fire into her with a heady groan from her lover. That was all she needed to be set off again.

Primal satisfaction sang in their bodies as they came together, took that final leap into the abyss with joined hands. The rush wasn't something that could be duplicated, it was simply theirs. Thought lost cohesion and words became mere sounds, but if there was one thing they did understand it was the significance of the moment. Far from alone, nowhere near unloved, they were part of a family.

The young vampire buckled onto his lover, both panting for breath as he lay atop her back. When she motioned to move he forced himself up, and she rolled over before pulling him down to her again. They lay together, smiling as their chests heaved and they basked in the afterglow. Softly she met his lips, wordlessly conveying her contentment, and his smile was just as soft as he wiped her wet hair away from her forehead. The ice that had been there minutes earlier was gone, but she paid it no mind. She craved his touch too much to care about that.

"I love you," said his hushed whisper, and she kissed him once more.

"I love you too." Her smile turned impious, and he gulped before she pushed him up and he fell to a seat on the floor. That grin still in place, she crawled up him to press herself against his rapidly hardening arousal. "You up for another round?" His erection throbbed against her, and the smirk widened. "Don't worry, I'll do the work this time."

Pressing him into her, she relished the feeling of him stretching her walls of her own will. She had waited too long for this, she was going to take every second with him she could get, and she was determined to do so.

Something prodded at the hole left unfilled, and she moved her head just in time to see Kurumu smirking at her before her tail slipped inside her. She moaned lowly as she stiffened in place, and the busty succubus chuckled sensuously.

"Payback time."

The night was young, and they had years of tension to unwind.

…

**Author's Notes:** After many cold showers, it's finally done: twelve pages of plot advancement, eighteen of lemon. Wow. I thought of many ways for it to come about, but eventually I went with the sudden and unforeseen break in restraint. After all the buildup and torture I've put them through, I thought it was only fair that they finally get their turn, and if you think there wasn't enough warning, I thought the last chapter and the subsequent initial pages of this chapter was plenty of that. As for Kokoa, I'll go into that more next chapter.

It's my goal to eventually get forty reviews for one chapter, and if a chapter like this can't accomplish that, I don't know. My goals are always growing, so I can't wait until they're hit. So far I've been consistently getting a good deal every chapter-and I can't thank you all enough for those-but I still can't help but think the views and **re**views are disproportionate, so I thought now was a good time to enlarge my goals. This isn't an ultimatum mind you, I just thought I'd tell you.

I'd like to thank everyone that's reviewed so far, and to those that favorite and alert my stories. If I could request something though, don't post reviews simply asking when the next chapter will come out; the PM system is there for a reason. To everyone that writes more than a two word sentence, explaining what they liked and why and all that amazing stuff, you guys have my heartfelt thanks. It's gratifying to see people telling me I've done a good job, but even more so when they actually put thought into it. Of course, thank you everyone who has reviewed, even just to tell me good job. Reviews make me happy, and happy me is easily motivated to write, LOL! Sorry, just had to put that there.

And to those offended by yuri, I apologize, but what little I did write of it fit with their characters.

I'm just going to skip my rant about the latest couple of chapters of the manga itself, because I want to hear what you think of _my _chapters and not my opinions, LOL! They'll have their uses later on in my story, but don't expect to see those new (useless) characters right away in here.

Anyways, please tell me what you think! I appreciate it!

Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

I probably won't get another one up in the near future because of what's coming up, so just to say it in advance: Merry Christmas everyone!


	12. To Frustrate A Vampire

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Rosario+Vampire, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story. Simple enough, ne? Just don't copy from this story and we're all good!

…

**To Frustrate A Vampire**

**.**

There were many different ways of falling asleep, but Kurumu Kurono decided her all-time favorite was passing out from pleasure. She hadn't thought it possible to get any better than that, but she found out she greatly enjoyed the waking process as well. When her eyes fluttered open to the most delicious aromas she had ever smelled teasing her senses, she would have been hard-pressed to think life could beat this experience any time soon. A soft, pleasantly cold body was pressed against her side, her room radiated the lingering fragrance of their intimacy, and now trying admirably to overpower it was the mouth-watering smell of a hot breakfast. Imagine her wonderment when it did in fact, get better.

Tsukune Aono, love of her life and destined mate, was walking towards where she and their blue-eyed lover lay in growing lucidity with a tray of steaming food. Her stomach gurgled noisily at the smell alone, but seeing her vampire lover in just his pants and an apron was an equally enticing second. A lazy smile traced over her lips as she pushed herself up to sit against the headboard of her bed, and that smile grew when her magnificently abused nether-regions made known their less-than-appreciative feelings on the matter.

_How did Moka sit through class the next day?_ She thought offhandedly. _If I had to sit on those hard wood desks I'd die!_ Not that she was complaining however, _nothing_ could make her do that. She was so beautifully sore all over moving was the last thing she wanted to do, and to see Tsukune up and about already just made her shake her head. Vampires were truly fearsome creatures. With strength almost without equal and a regenerative capability so powerful immortality was well within their ability, put those traits in the bedroom and there was a combination capable of making a _succubus_ faint.

Her own supernatural healing was nothing to scoff at, but compared to vampires most monsters were like humans in that regard. Just looking at the scars riddling his body was enough to make her wince, and to think he had endured all that while in a fragile human shell never failed to make her love for him grow. Now the weakest among them had taken his rightful place as one of the strongest, and it was her mission to help him be the best he could possibly be.

_His_ mission on the other hand seemed to be making her want to strip him bare and have her way with him…again…because she had never been served breakfast in bed in her entire life. After last night—or possibly that morning already—she didn't know if her body was capable of it right then. Desire and means to do so were two very different things. As her covers held their precarious balance concealing her bust, Tsukune placed the tray on her lap, and Mizore hummed happily as she inhaled the aroma from over her partner's shoulder.

"That smells absolutely heavenly," the Snow Woman breathed contently as she draped herself over her best friend's side, and Tsukune smiled proudly before greeting them both with a soft kiss.

"I hope so; I had to fight off a fuzzy green thing in the corner of the fridge to get to that rice! I managed to salvage some leftover fish and some unused bacon; just fry it up with a bit of spice and some juice and you've got yourself a decent breakfast if I do say so myself."

Kurumu popped a morsel of the fried rice into her mouth and moaned openly when the flavor hit her tongue. It was still _very_ hot, but that just made it even better. "Oh god, this is _exactly_ what I need right now! _This_ is how you start a day!"

"Glad to be of service," Tsukune replied, delight clear in his eyes. "Those lessons with Moka are really starting to pay off."

"In more ways than one," Mizore murmured hotly as a piece of bacon disappeared between her lips, and her lover's skin predictably darkened. The bluehead beside her laughed as their young vampire went red, and grabbed one of the cups closest to her for a drink. Her parched throat rejoiced at the hydration being offered it at long last, and she didn't even notice the odd taste until it was almost completely gone. Seeing the look being directed his way, the former human smiled apologetically.

"Sorry if it tastes a little weird, I used a bit of an herbal capsule in the pitcher so I could have some too. I don't even notice it anymore, but I guess other people might."

"No biggie," she responded nonchalantly as she threw another clump of rice into her mouth and shivered in delight. "But what are _you_ going to eat?" With a devilish smirk she lifted her chopsticks to her mouth, tauntingly displaying the new tuft of food balanced between her teeth. Tsukune only returned the smirk before he darted forward and kissed her just like the succubus wanted, and when he pulled away the smirk returned, only this time the rice was in _his_ mouth. Their eyes were locked on him as he chewed and swallowed, and with a quick swipe of her drink he had washed it all down.

"I think I'll manage just fine."

Mizore nearly whimpered as she took in the scene, but settled on feeding him a piece of bacon and proceeding to fight his tongue for it in a rather exciting bout of dexterity. He gulped heavily even though she was the one that had gained the food, and her eyes remained on his for the entire time she took a sip of her juice, daring him to challenge her again. He was all too happy to take her up on that.

It went on like that until the entire meal Tsukune had brought them had been shared between the three lovers, and it was only then that Kurumu started noticing a very familiar heat building in her body. It had been growing steadily over the course of their dining, but this was something else entirely. This wasn't a low-burning fire steadily growing in strength, this was a flash-fire that was rapidly incinerating her every inhibition. Any remaining discomfort of her body was vanishing faster than she had thought possible, and she knew it was because of the all-consuming inferno making her body scream for its mate again.

With a look over at her violet-haired companion, she knew she was feeling something similar. Her eyes were nearly dazed, and the lust was practically palpable in the air around her. Her pale skin was visibly reddening, and her breathing was becoming increasingly heavier as she looked at her two lovers. Tsukune seemed to be feeling something as well, because he was shifting uncomfortably on his seat, looking very much like he was restraining himself from jumping back into bed.

"T-Tsukune…" Kurumu began hesitantly while eyeing their empty glasses with caution, "where did you find this juice?"

Said male was tugging at the material of the apron like it was suddenly too constricting. He looked back at the kitchenette just to make sure, and knew something had to be wrong. "I-It was right up with all your other ingredients. Y-You had it labeled as a juice mix!"

There was a sinking feeling in his gut that things had taken an interesting turn, but whether that was for the better or worse remained to be seen. All he knew was his body was quickly tightening in a furious flame of desire, and his mind was fighting a losing battle. The sultry smile that formed on his lover's face when she gazed to where he had just looked made him gulp again, and her beautiful amethyst irises sparkled with mischief.

"That it is, Tsukune; that it is. I would recommend losing those pants though."

His heart was hammering against his ribs as the heat of his body grew. "Why?" he hissed huskily, and barely registered the fact that he was almost on top of her until her nimble fingers trailed up his chest, now inexplicably devoid of the apron previously on his person.

"Because you have about two minutes until Mizore and I rip them from you, and that's only if you don't do it first." He gasped when she gripped his engorged manhood through his jeans, and she giggled lustfully as she panted hot breaths against his ear. "And if you ask 'why' for that, well, you were the one that just fed us one of my most powerful _aphrodisiacs_."

Realization dawned just in time for him to remove the tray, and soon another thing was over her body, halting any escape—not like she was thinking of doing so however. Only this time it was _him_.

Now Mizore _did_ whimper. "Meh, I didn't want to walk today anyways."

Kurumu merely laughed as she relinquished herself to the concoction's effects and her vampire's hot kisses down her neck. Cracking an eye open to look over at her friend and lover, she grinned sedately as she forced back the sounds of approval already pining for vocalization. Maybe she had made this particular mix a little _too_ potent. Then again, that was why it had been her last resort had the previous day not worked out as marvelously as it had.

"Today? You're…mmmhm…underestimating me," she moaned distractedly. "W-When you get to feel what I'm—oh sweet mother of g~_gah!_—f-feeling…my bet's on _tomorrow_."

For some reason, the thought made her smile.

"That'll be the best reason I've ever had to skip school."

It was a good thing they had the day off, and even better that the charm was still in place. They wouldn't be leaving that room for a good long time.

…

In another room, one known to others as the residence of the most beautiful woman on campus, Moka Akashiya shot awake, sweaty and breathless. Gulping in glorious air and willing her pulse to slow, she almost screamed in frustration when she realized everything she had just experienced had been a dream. Choice words one would never expect to be uttered from her mouth were mumbled bitterly when the ensuing state of her bedding from such a nocturnal delusion was noticed, but the reason behind them was only because it hadn't been because of a _reality_.

Sure, she had had dreams before, but never had they been so vivid, so ripe with detail and sensation. Normally there was a sense of detachment that came with what the body knew wasn't really happening, but _that_ dream, that dream had felt as if she was right there. Burning lips that left trails of ice on skin wet with desire, the fullness inside her as her body was plundered tirelessly, but most importantly, the overwhelming love she felt radiating in the atmosphere of the event itself. Electric awareness assaulted her from all sides, like there was more than one person there, warmly attending to every inch of her supersensitive flesh, and she could only cry for more as her body fell into a state of permanent bliss.

Names eluded her, faces blurred until even she couldn't tell who was making love to her, or if she was even the one being made love to in the first place. As the peaks of pleasure coursed higher, she didn't know if she could keep breathing, if she could keep up with the onslaught of her senses. Time had no bearing where she was; it could have been five minutes, it could have been five hours, but that made no difference. In that last moment of clarity, before the ever-climbing zenith was exceeded one final time and the dam of restraint was obliterated in an explosion of unprecedented relief, warm honey-brown eyes defined themselves from the background of obscurity. A soft smile she knew all too well accompanied it, unmistakable masculine pride shining from an expression she could barely make out, and then the world faded away as she was overcome.

Waking to the disappointment of a bed deprived of the one she wanted, the sheer frustration of knowing everything she had just gone through to be nothing more than the product of an extremely pent-up libido, was almost more than she could take. She had seen him, felt him around her, inside her, _with_ her: her mate, her eternal partner…but in the end it had only been a dream. She was so stressed she could have cried!

Three weeks had been redefined from twenty-one days to infinity squared in her mind. Normally she was a very patient person, the picture of kindness and selflessness, but that only went so far apparently. After that, it would seem she would begin taking from her beloved inner self's personality, and would henceforth proceed to destroy any obstacle to what she craved without mercy. Just like the first time she had tasted his blood, after getting a sample of uninhibited passion between lovers united she began longing for _every_ aspect of him. There was no compare to the fantasies of yesteryear, having experience to directly draw from made those fantasies so potent she could feel him move in her, taste the sweat of his skin, smell the raw lust pour from their bodies as they joined in perfect, wonderful carnality.

She _wanted_ him! She wanted him and she had been forced to endure _three weeks_ of celibacy! That wasn't the worst part of it either, and that was saying something. If _she_ had it bad, little was left to the imagination of what would transpire should a certain _sealed_ being be released. If _she_ was irritated, there was no word that could aptly describe just how annoyed the vampire within was, and that was only compounded with the fact that though it was her body, she could do nothing to relieve the stress imprisoned as she was. What this meant, naturally, was a radical change in _requests_ from her. Sealed she might be, but she could still experience things vicariously through her outer self's senses.

Right then the vampiress would have given anything for a few moments of privacy with her own body! Of course, her pink-haired counterpart was informed of this, frequently. Every few seconds actually, if she could. The pinkette began to pray for her to go to sleep, just so she could have some quiet. Since their thoughts were so much alike however, that was a feat in itself. They were so synchronized it was downright unsettling.

_**When I said we had all of eternity, I didn't mean for him to make us **_**wait**_** that long!**_ The silver-haired beauty growled, and her outer self almost felt bad for her.

The words were no empty lies, there was real frustration mounting in her, as well as a few insecurities, as unlikely as that seemed. She just couldn't understand _why_ he hadn't come to her again. She had seen the fire in his eyes more than once, had felt that humid tension in their lessons even more than that. She _knew_ he wanted her, and she _knew_ he had the backbone to initiate it. She even knew of the tension building between him and their other would-be lovers, and why he hadn't come to her because of that alone made her wonder. There should have been no need for him to look as strained as he had over the past few days, not when he had someone ready, and more than willing, to help him relieve it.

_You're thinking into it too much again,_ her outer self scolded softly, and the pale-skinned goddess glared at her.

_**Like you haven't.**_

She had the good grace to look sheepish. _I won't deny it. But it's Tsukune, and before that we had never done anything like that before either. Maybe he just doesn't know how to approach it again._

_**There's always pushing us to the nearest wall and—**_

_Ura-chan!_

There was a small moment of silence, during which the outer form of Moka Akashiya had the time to gulp quietly, before: _**When you can look me in the eye and say you haven't thought of it every time you're doing those 'cooking lessons', **_**maybe**_** I'll let that one go.**_

_Come on, Ura-chan, don't be like that, _the emerald-eyed version of herself whined.

_**Like what?**_ She countered instantly. _**Frustrated? Annoyed? Do you have **_**any**_** idea what it's like to be hot and bothered and not be able to **_**do**_** anything about it! No, you don't, so don't bother.**_ With a deep inhalation to calm herself—which was strange when the fact she technically didn't have a physical presence was taken into account—she continued._** That's beside the point right now though, and I think it's time we do something about it.**_

_Like…what?_

Inner Moka licked her lips hungrily. _**I think it's time we show Tsukune his place. Clearly we didn't get the message across well enough last time. I will not have my mate afraid to touch me, and it seems he's forgotten that.**_

There were no arguments there.

With a sigh of resignation, Moka went about readying a bath. She had to get cleaned up, and she had to clean her sheets now too.

She wouldn't accept the next time she had to do so being from anything other than a whole night of lovemaking with her mate. That was, if they even made it to the bed.

…

In the topmost level of the women's dormitory, bright pink eyes opened wide. Skin wet with perspiration and arousal stuck to her equally moist nightwear, and her chest heaved in the search for air as she recovered from what had to be the most intense dream she had ever had. Ruby might have been annoyed at the prospect of finding out her greatest wish had turned out to be a subconscious conjuration, but that would only be if she didn't know magic when she felt it. Her mind was already buzzing a mile a minute, her body jumped high on adrenaline and endorphins as she recovered from what had transpired in her and the possible implications of it.

That kind of dream manipulation was only capable by a few rare species of youkai, and only the most powerful among them could influence a dream to that extent. Complete and utter domination of the nervous system to the level of realism in unconsciousness was of the highest order in illusions and charms, for it involved a combination of both. It was also _extremely_ dangerous, an enemy no monster would want to face, with the possible exception of vampires. The reason it was feared so terribly was because if the body believed it had died in the dream, it really would. Rules meant nothing in that realm, imagination was the only limitation. It could be used to bring untold pleasure, or unmitigated pain.

What was even more frightening in this scenario was it wasn't done intentionally. She would have known if she had been the target of a direct spell or magical influence. It felt more like a wave of power unknowingly synching minds into its hold, and a sleeping mind was more vulnerable than many people realized. If she was but a corollary victim in the unsuspecting use, that meant she likely wasn't the only effected. The staggering thing was just how _real_ it felt.

To not only affect _a_ mind with that kind of engineering, but _many_ minds, was…difficult for even her to classify. While Vampires were labeled as S-class, there was no true designation that could be drawn to the more powerful among them. Trying to appropriate the level of what was just done to the world of the arcane was like trying to compare a regular Snow Woman to Mizore's level of mastery. She wracked her brain, trying to figure out what kind of monster would be able to do something like that, but stilled when she remembered those eyes. She knew those eyes. She _knew_ those _eyes!_ She _knew_ that _smile!_

The answer that came to mind instantly thereafter then was little surprise.

_Kurumu! A Succubus, of course! I…I can't believe she's made it to Nightwalker already! But…with the kind of bond Tsukune has with us, it probably wasn't too hard for her to instinctively seek out his essence. If she siphoned some of _his_ energy, awakening like that would be anything _but_ impossible._

She clutched a hand over her undulating heart, still reeling from the effects of the dream and the revelations afterward. It was moments like these that she hated being so magically sensitive, because anyone else would have thought they had just had a really, really nice dream.

Looking down on her bed, she groaned silently.

One that required a change in bedding.

…

Elsewhere in the dorm, a younger witch's eyes popped open, and she laughed blissfully.

"I think that'll last me a few years ~desu! I need to talk to Kurumu-san as soon as I can!"

Yukari Sendou had found the perfect way to wait until she was of age.

…

A terrified yelp was what heralded the awakening of another student, and unlike the others, who varied from disappointment, shock, and glee, this one held nothing but pure fear. Maybe it was because she had been making a conscious effort over the past two weeks to _avoid_ a certain vampire; maybe it was because she had unsuccessfully tried to recreate that brain-numbing euphoria every day of those mentioned two weeks; it might have even been because she had been trying to _forget_ that that brain-numbing euphoria had been brought on by _him_. Maybe it was a combination of the three, but whatever it was it had a more than adverse effect on her.

After a dream that had spawned the second most powerful orgasm of her life, a dream that she had been thoroughly enjoying right up until those beautiful topaz orbs had appeared, she was in the worst conceivable mood. The one reason above all for that irritation, was she _did not_ love him! She could respect his tenacity even in the face of insurmountable odds, admire his kindness even to the ones that deserved none, gape in disbelief at his continued accomplishments, and even admit that he had turned into quite a handsome man. If there was one thing she could _not_ do, was say she was in love with him.

She was in deep, unadulterated _lust_ with him. She took comfort in that fact, because she knew lust could fade over time, and love could indeed defeat it. She had no desire to compete with her older sister _this_ time, but she could confess that she had an itch and he had proven surprisingly adept at scratching it, even in her own bloody _dreams_.

_Maybe I can talk Onee-sama into sharing him with me?_ It was a crazy thought, but he had been driving her crazy ever since he had pushed her hormones into overdrive and now aroused her at the mere sight of his fangs. It was no mystery why she tried to avoid him then. At the very least she would need to convince him to keep drinking her blood, because she had no idea how else to keep the desire in check.

It didn't help that he was one of the only males she knew of that was more powerful than her. She had heard stories about the former student police leader, but he had already graduated before she had even started her enrollment at the school. After seeing _his_ transfiguration though, and what he did after, including what had taken place between him and her beloved older sister, something had begun growing in the young woman. His bite had only proved to cement that.

Naturally, her primal instincts had therefore deduced that Tsukune Aono would make a wonderful bedmate. Her rational mind had recoiled in horror, and thus started a terrible war inside the redhead, one conflicted between continuing to sneer at him, or strip him of all his clothes.

She had been attracted to people before, of course, but it was always discarded easily when her pride deemed them insignificant. She had never dealt with anyone that even that would bow to, no matter how much she might deny it. It became completely impossible when her goal in life, her magnificent, unbeatable sister had surrendered her heart to him. That only made more problems for her though. She recognized his strength because of what he had done, but he was also considered untouchable because of her sister's claim on him.

Vampires may be considered morally loose in some senses, but only those willing to risk blood-feuds encroached on another vampire's mate without consent. While the term did have its weaknesses, seeing as some thought it more of a mutual attraction that lasted however many years it might over their infinite lifespan and could be ended whenever, and as such not binding, it still had its power when in place. Most didn't even bother, and children could and had been born without the title held. If vampires chose to be together they did, and when they didn't they didn't, it was really that simple. Exclusivity was something not many of them had a concept of, it was their way around the seriousness the elder eternals held for the marriage equivalent, regardless of what they thought on the matter. Nowadays only some chose to look for that one that they could stay with forever. Her sister was one of those few.

It almost made her sad she didn't actually love him, because she had seen how much he loved the others. She just didn't feel that way. That didn't stop her from wanting him to ravish her until she couldn't see straight, but that was purely physical desire and held none of the emotional attachment she knew was needed to found a relationship.

God, she really needed to get laid…or bitten. She was going so crazy she was actually starting to make sense!

Stripping her bed of its sheets and herself of her pajamas, Kokoa Shuzen replaced what she could before crawling back under the warm covers. All the thinking was giving her a headache, and she thought the best thing she could do was go back to sleep. It was a day off for a reason.

Little did she know about what had restarted in another dorm room.

…

Later on in the day, when even the most dilatory of the semi-conscious could drag themselves out of bed, the resident assistant to Youkai Academy's headmaster finally found an unused washing machine. It was partly her fault, since she had gone back to bed even after waking up, but she couldn't really be blamed. When she felt the magic start to tickle her awareness again she couldn't help but smile, and decided to use her well-earned downtime to catch-up on some sleep. The added bonus doing so would provide was simply the icing on the cake. Though, waking up a few hours later to another set of ruined sheets did kind of suck. That would have only bothered her had it not been so, _so_ very worth it.

Waking up to feel the magic _still_ wanting to affect her however, _that_ threw her through a loop. Staying awake to have fantasies of every kind start hitting her was something she hadn't expected, but she probably shouldn't have been surprised. The pull on her mind was unexpectedly strong, and anyone else would have simply thought they were a bit preoccupied that particular day. It got to the point where she had to put a ward around herself just to hear her own thoughts, and to keep them from being found out any more than she already had, she buffed the weak charm she had taught Kurumu with a more encompassing one hidden discreetly on her door. It wouldn't do for the entire women's dorm to begin thinking they had become nymphomaniacs overnight.

The same could be said of her. If the visions of Tsukune doing unrepeatable things to her had been out of her skill to obstruct, she might have just broken in to join them _before_ she put on the barrier.

Thankfully, just she and a select few others would be the only ones to fill in the blank face of their topaz-eyed mystery lover. She hoped.

A student came by then and checked one of the machines, and sure enough, what she pulled out were clean sheets. Clearly doing her best to keep a nonchalant appearance, she moved them into a dryer and walked away, giving the next person who would undoubtedly need one a washer. Ruby tried not to grin when she saw another student approach, but this one would be recognized anywhere. The pink hair gave her away. She stopped short upon seeing the elder witch, but apparently decided necessity outweighed possible discovery.

The aide had to admit, she was a very convincing actress, and did everything with a fluidity that made one unsure if they had indeed seen what they might have caught out of the corner of their eye. The washer was full before anyone was the wiser, and the vampire sighed in relief.

"I guess everyone decided to do their laundry today, huh?" she asked, with what was quite likely oblivious curiosity.

Ruby set her with a knowing look and decided to humor her. "What a coincidence, isn't it?"

The tone instantly set the younger woman on edge, and her eyes darted back to her hamper just in case she had accidentally left something out that might have given her elder some kind of clue. "Y-Yeah…you too?"

The thought was there to let the vampiress off easy, but that wouldn't be any fun. She knew better than anyone how the emerald-eyed eternal would react to having fantasies very much like what she had already experienced herself forced upon her, and from the amount of laundry she was doing, she couldn't have been far off. _The poor girl must be going mad. If she knew what Kurumu did…_ The vision of an unstoppable, angry, red-eyed bringer of death mercilessly beating the memory from undeserving students came to mind, and she winced mentally. No matter how much her beauty might be adored, Ruby had little doubt the unsealed vampiress would beat down the headmaster himself if she thought he had been privy to something only a few should know of.

What made her do it then she didn't know, but it happened anyway. "Me too, what? Do you mean did my dreams make me go cross-eyed too? I'll say I _suspected_ when you told me you were behind the whole dorm thing, but I never could have guessed he could be so…_wild_. Hoped for, maybe, but that's it."

Not even Inner Moka in all her pale glory could hold a candle to how white her outer personality had just turned, but behind the blatant fear in her brilliant green eyes stood a very real fury. The witch's hand went to the staff slung behind her back for just a moment, but that was all the time it took for comprehension to light up those viridian orbs, more than likely helped along by the more knowledgeable source inside.

"Kurumu…"

Two words came to the mind of one Ruby Toujou. _Ooooh…shit._ "Listen, Moka, it's not as bad as it se—"

To her great surprise, the pink-haired vampire started _laughing_. She laughed until tears sprouted, and she wiped at them halfheartedly before breaking out again. "I can't believe—she finally built up—the nerve to—oh god! Oh—just—oh god!"

Backing away slowly seemed like a prudent course of action, but instead the black-haired masochist chose to start laughing with her. She had found it funny from the beginning, so it wasn't like she was forcing herself to laugh in the first place. At least the school newspaper wouldn't need to be adding an obituary section.

When the laughter turned to giggles and eventually subsided completely, Ruby felt much safer than she had before. "One of these days you'll have to tell me how you know so much."

Moka smiled as she stretched with a happy sigh, but when she regarded the other woman again the look on her face was nothing like how she sounded. Instead of dodging the question, she took the opportunity to trust. The answer that followed was like a bucket of ice water, instantly sobering any merriment that might have been left. "Before she…I…was sealed and allowed to look for my mother in the human world, I was still a pure-blood Vampire in my father's house. Strength was only one part of the expectations we had to deal with. Vampires are naturally more gifted than other monsters, but we still have to train those abilities. Even the most powerful vampire will only get so far relying on base talent alone. We _had_ to be the best, there was no other choice for us…her. I may have come later, when she was sealed, but the memories of our childhood are still clear to me, just without the fade of the rosary. It's weird sometimes because we're so different, but it's even weirder because we're so alike."

"You did what you had to," her friend responded sagely as she rubbed her shoulder to reassure the troubled teen. "And look where you are because of it. Everything happens for a reason, even if we don't understand it at the time."

"Like a human coming to an all-monster school?" the pinkette asked with a wry smirk.

Ruby laughed again. "_Especially_ that."

That sobered look came back to the sealed being, and her green eyes darkened in memory as she chewed her lower lip between her teeth. Emotions of every kind played their way over her vibrant irises, but the one hinted behind them all was fear, and a far deeper one than simply a fear for physical wellbeing. This was the fear that reeked uncertainty, that told the story of a, quite literal, eternal loneliness. "I can't imagine what would have happened if I hadn't met him that day, in fact, I don't even want to _think_ about it! I might have given up, maybe even…gone back to my father. I wouldn't know this…this _feeling_ of being in love, of being _truly_ loved. Without Tsukune, I'd go back to being a bitter vampire, and I know now all the conditions of my rosary were meant to either seal my power away forever, or return me to my original state. I wasn't supposed to find someone like Tsukune, who could release my true self without harming the rosary. It was supposed to be one or the other: sealed and powerless or powerful and bitter, and if I had never met Tsukune, I'd go back to being another of my father's pawns."

"You can't know that."

"But I can," she replied sadly. "If I had never met Tsukune, I'd never have met any of you, and even if I did, we probably wouldn't have become friends. It was a last gamble on my part; coming to the human world I mean, you know? I needed something that would show me the world wasn't hopeless, that it wasn't better off manipulated by us. We wanted a reason not to hate humans, the people our mother hid among.

"We were so close to losing hope too; that was the reason we enrolled in Youkai Academy in the first place, since human schools were a nightmare. It's the one time I've ever appreciated irony. On the first day of our new life at a monster-only school, I found a human kinder than anything I had ever met. In the place I was going to to run away from the fear and hatred of humans, I met the one that would give me the reason I needed to see the good in them."

_**The one who would give me the reason to open my heart to another…and teach me what it's like to experience unconditional love…**_ her inner self murmured softly, and her hands sought out that precious place over her ghostly chest.

Moka repeated the line just as tenderly as her unsealed self had whispered it, and the smile on her face changed from one haunted by the past to one pleased by the present. Joy found its way into her voice, and sadness was nowhere to be found. In hope the darkness of times gone was brightened, and the expression she wore displayed that for all to see. "Now we're not alone. Tsukune has taught us more about love than I've ever received from my parents, and now we have a new family. If I had never met Tsukune, none of that would have happened."

Being the recipient of the vulnerability shown her made Ruby's eyes sparkle with happy tears. "Kinda amazing how thinking about the future makes you think about the past, huh?"

"You got that right," the vampiress admitted with a wide grin. "Plus, it was one of the only ways I could keep myself from running to Tsukune's room and locking the door, Rei-chan or not!"

The witch burst out laughing at the confession, more than happy the suffocating atmosphere of moments earlier had disappeared. "Well, one of those problems is gone now. Rei-chan will be living in Paradise until further notice, but on the other hand you wouldn't have found Tsukune in _his_ room."

She waved a hand dismissively. "Minor detail."

The frank tone caught Ruby off-guard. "You're…not kidding, are you?"

The emerald-eyed vampire smiled in an altogether voracious way, extended fangs and everything, and surprisingly enough the look actually suited the normally kind personality. If that same look had been done by her inner equivalent, the results would have been far more dramatic, regardless of whom it had been set upon. "Who knows?"

The façade was broken when she winked playfully, and the two started laughing again.

It was at that moment something occurred to them.

"Hey…where's Mizore?"

There are some questions better left unanswered.

…

The unknowing subject of another's query was in fact nestled against her lover's broad chest as they gasped for breath like there was no tomorrow.

"_Wow._"

A sweaty mop of blue hair appeared over his other side to look at her, and the succubus smiled widely. "I know, right?"

Tsukune—conflicted between absolute hysteria, limitless pride, and sheer terror—almost groaned. "There goes your damage deposit."

Kurumu giggled as she traced her sharp nails over his impressive abdomen. "Nah, I'm pretty sure it was close to breaking before, right Mizore?" she asked suggestively, and the Snow Woman smirked as she held a hand to her chin in mock-contemplation.

"That sounds about right. Perfectly natural it give out. Maybe it was made from the same wood as the dorm?"

Her duet partner laughed outright, and even Tsukune chuckled at the reference.

"At least it can't get any more broken than it already is."

A violet eyebrow rose. "Can I test that theory?"

The former human grinned wickedly as he flipped himself over her, and the now broken bed-frame creaked in protest.

.

V^^^V

.

Darkness had fallen and given way to light, and so it was that Tsukune awoke in his own bed to the sound of his blaring alarm. His entire body felt like lead as he swung out wildly to silence the annoyance, and that was even _with_ his advanced regeneration. He had made it back to his room late in the evening the day before, because as much as he would have liked to simply fall asleep next to them when Kurumu's concoction wore off—many _hours_ later—he didn't want to risk another early morning escape. At the time he had felt fine, but he should have known there would be repercussions for pushing his body far past what it was meant to go, especially sealed as he was.

_Oh _man_, Kurumu should really put warning labels on those things,_ he thought as he literally pushed himself upright to sit over the side of the bed. He scratched at his long mess of hair idly while his cognitive processes rebooted, and noted soon after that he was in desperate need of a bath. Even a human nose would be able to pick up on his activities quite clearly, and that definitely wasn't something he wanted.

Afterwards he felt infinitely better than what he had, but school beckoned. It felt strange to not greet Rei before he left down the path, but he was reminded of where she was when he looked up and noticed the roof was vacant of its usual occupant. The separation wasn't something he was used to, but it was only temporary. It was comforting in a way, and terrifying in another, mostly because he knew why it was only temporary. It wouldn't ruin his day, nothing could do that after the day he had yesterday—and the night before that yet— but then it got better.

Moka was already at the fork in the road waiting for him when he arrived, and she offered him a small smile before claiming her first kiss of the day. "Good morning, Tsukune."

"With a hello like that, it certainly is," he replied light-heartedly with a lazy grin, still slightly sluggish from everything that had happened. Relishing her carefree laughter as she wound her free arm into his was something he could always do however. Make no mistake, his body was still horribly sore, but he knew it would get easier after he had fed. That in mind, he hoped he would be able to find Ruby before the bell rang, because if _he_ was feeling this sore, only God could know how Kurumu and Mizore were faring. Of course, he had been wrong before, but on this he was pretty certain.

Jerking his head to the side, his neck finally cracked with a satisfying _pop_, and he sighed in relief. That had been the one stiff joint that hadn't been calmed by the hot bath he had taken. The other vampire looked at him strangely as he rubbed his neck with his typical smile in place, and barely resisted the wince hearing the sound had almost brought about.

"Rough night?"

He chuckled. "The opposite, actually; I slept like a rock. It was the getting up in the morning that was rough."

The barest trace of a knowing smile pulled at her lips. "Rough _day_, then?"

Ever her Tsukune, he nearly sputtered, but that was only _nearly_. She was impressed with how much control over himself he had gained over the years. "Y-You could say that."

It was a nice effort, but the stutter gave him away. Well, that and what had been dubbed 'the dream' over the course of the whole night the day before. "Don't tell me Kurumu tired you out?"

He almost walked right into a tree. "H-Huh?"

"During training," she clarified innocently. "She must have really worked you over if you were that tired."

_That she did,_ he thought impishly, _then I got her back, then _Mizore_ got her back, then _they_ got _me_ back…._ Momentarily lost in his memories, he completely missed the way Moka's knowing smirk widened when she twirled away from him. Ruby was going to be upset she had teased him without her, but she wasn't about to let such a beautiful opening slide. Besides, she had lots of pent-up frustration to deal with; if she wanted to hold out any longer she needed some kind of outlet.

"I'd bet you gave as good as you got though, ne?"

His mind reeled for a response to the seemingly naïve question, but only managed a hardly articulate choking sound.

"You've always been like that; if the pressure builds, when push comes to shove you'll always be on top of the matter!"

Tsukune had forgotten how to breathe.

"Yeah you might hesitate at first, but when things get hard you'll get right into the center of it!"

"Stop," he rasped hoarsely. "I get it, I get it: you know. Geez, you could give the headmaster a run for his money with those lines…"

_Thank you, Ruby!_ The green-eyed youth mentally cheered. He didn't have to know it was the headmaster's _aide_ that had helped her think up some of them. It felt nice to be able to casually address every one of her friends, and that too Tsukune could take credit for. She knew he wouldn't, but it was because of him that it had started.

"Before you kill me, I'd like to remind you that you were the one who told me about the whole vampire morality thing in the first place." He wasn't going to deny it, that made no sense. The least he could do was resign himself to whatever unfortunate fate was about to befall him.

Surprise of surprises, his goddess giggled brightly. "Of course I know that, and I'm definitely not going to kill you. You're so much better to me _alive_, thank you." Sauntering back up to him slowly and dragging a manicured fingernail up his jaw, her green eyes sparkled when she saw his Adam's apple bob. Generally such an action would be something more suited to the elegant vampiress within, but she had held back for far too long. It was time to set up a reprieve. Her normally cheerful voice dropped two whole octaves as she whispered, "I'm not going to tell you what I _will_ do, but if you're going to forget your place, I _am_ going to show it to you again."

He gulped raggedly. Now that he thought about it, he had been dealing with tension of all kinds for the past three weeks, but the recurring thought that was just voicing itself again noted that so had _she_. He hadn't really been the best mate in that regard. He hadn't ever seen Moka pushed so far though either, and this new seductive side of her outer personality was _very_ enticing.

"Yes, ma'am," he croaked, and just like that she was back to normal.

"There! Now that that's done with, let's keep going. Don't want to be late for school after all!"

They did as she suggested, but there was something nagging at him that he eventually had to vocalize. "Should I even bother asking how you found out?"

The knowing grin of earlier turned into a full-fledged beaming smile. "You know in the human legends of Succubae they seduce men in their dreams?" He nodded mutely, scarlet painted on his cheeks. "That started because of their charm and illusion abilities. If they're used together, the illusion will make the mind think something has happened to it, and the charm will force the body to react likewise. Let's just say they weren't known to use pain when given the choice. When you're sleeping the effect is even greater 'cause the mind is more vulnerable."

"Sounds incredible," her brown-haired mate marvelled quietly, "but what does that have to do with anything?"

"Basically, Kurumu hijacked our dreams and made us feel everything _she_ was feeling."

He had never frozen so quickly, not even with Mizore's help. "_O-Our?_"

Being on the other end of the teasing was too much fun, and Moka would admit that to anyone who asked. "I never would have known if Ruby hadn't recognized it."

Tsukune fainted immediately.

An amused apparition looked on as she shook her head. _**Well, he's getting better at least. Before he would have fainted straightaway when you started suggesting we knew something,**_ Inner Moka stated smugly.

_True enough. He _does_ need to wake up though; we need to get to school._ Something came to mind, and she smirked. "I'm thirsty anyways."

The bite to his neck did certainly wake him up.

…

Thanks to finding Ruby just before class started, Tsukune did feel much better, and for some reason the thought was there that the short time they had been able to spend together was a blessing. She had a look in her eye that wasn't entirely pleasant, one that spoke of some kind of discomfort in the future, usually at his expense. Thank goodness the bell had rung before anything could come of it.

Walking into class, the girls were gossiping together like they usually did, but this time more than a few were sporting colourful cheeks. Some were even talking to men in the class, much to their obvious delight, and embarrassment in some cases. Moreover, one couple was rather heatedly making out in one of the corners of the room, and when the teacher walked in and they pulled apart, it was the male that was visibly dazed. Tsukune nearly chuckled at that. He knew very well what a woman in love was capable of, and a frustrated woman more so.

Roll call proceeded as normal, but there were two noticeable absences from the senior class, ones that had Tsukune fighting to hold off the dumb grin just itching to crawl over his face. At the head of the class, Shizuka was scratching the side of her head with her pencil as she looked over the list again.

"That's weird. Shirayuki-san hasn't missed a class in a long time, and Kurono-san too?" she muttered more to her herself than the rest of the class, and once more the urge to grin hit Tsukune. He had been right after all. "Oh well, everyone gets sick! If a day in bed is what they need, that's okay!" she finished with her usual cheerful flair, and one former human was now holding a hand over his mouth to keep from laughing too hard.

_If only you knew, Sensei,_ he thought maniacally, and to his horror a short burst of air broke from his pursed lips.

Obviously, the teacher's attention was soon on the red-faced teen. "Are you okay, Aono-kun?"

It took everything he had to strangle off his laughter and straighten his lips under his hand to face her regularly. "Of…of course, Sensei. W-Why do you ask?"

"You look a bit flushed. Could you have what Shirayuki-san and Kurono-san have?" she asked innocently, and Tsukune very nearly started vibrating in place he was trying so hard not to laugh.

Swallowing as deeply as he could, he put on his best poker face, which did little to hide the mirth brightening his eyes. "M-Maybe. I am a bit…achy, b-but I heal faster than them, s-so it's always…p-possible."

That seemed to appease to cat demon, and she smiled merrily. "Who knows how sick vampires can even get, if they can at all! I'm disappointed they're missing the first day of reviews, but you're friends with them, right? Will you go check up on them and bring them what they missed?"

He allowed the smallest bit of the restrained smile to break through. "I think I can do that."

She clapped happily. "Excellent! Maybe you'll be class manager again this year too!"

All color suddenly drained from his face.

As class picked up, one student's gaze was still fixed on the sealed vampire. Was she not invisible to all but one, many would have seen her prideful smirk. _**So, teamed up on you, did they? That would explain why the dream felt like there was more than one person there. I'll give you the day to recover, lover, but I'm going to make sure you tire me out more than both of them combined. After all, only a vampiress can keep up with a vampire.**_

Tsukune tried to ignore the foreboding, surprisingly pleasant shiver that ran up his spine.

…

Elsewhere, two sleeping bodies sneezed.

…

With the end of the school day came another problem, one that was currently on her way to find a certain weakling. She had a predicament of her own, and she had made it her goal that today would be the day he would help her rectify it, one way or another. She would gladly give up a pinch of blood to feel that again, so she could only hope he was thirsty. Unlike herself and her sister, he didn't have a reserve supply of blood-packs should the need be too overwhelming, so he had to rely on the health of his friends for his sustenance. Surely he wouldn't be too hesitant to accept another willing donor, would he?

With Summer Break fast approaching, she knew they would soon be gathering in the evenings for the studying sessions they had taken to practicing together. This left a few choices for her: before school, which wasn't possible because of her sister's habits and his usual sources at that time; lunch time, which was ruled out because of the populace often around then; and after school, which was perfect because then he would be feeling better for the rest of the day and she would have the opportunity to properly bask in the euphoric delirium his bites would leave her with. She just had to make sure she didn't faint again.

Like typical, she found him in the Newspaper Club's headquarters, but unlike typical he was _alone_. While no reason immediately came to mind, she couldn't help but thank her lucky stars she had managed to come at such an opportune moment. The kid was hardly ever by himself. He was working away on one of the computers, probably on an article for the paper, and he jumped when the door clicked close.

"Jeez, Kokoa-san, you almost gave me a heart attack!" he exclaimed. An audible sigh of relief came as he loosed the hand clutching said heart, and her chest tightened when he smiled innocently at her. "Come to do some last-minute adjustments to your column?"

"No, idiot," she replied mockingly, but there was none of her usual malice in it. "My column's perfect, as always, and by the way, vampires don't have heart attacks. Kinda defeat the purpose, wouldn't ya say?"

He laughed tentatively at the amusement in her tone, and scratched his jaw in embarrassment. "Sorry. I guess I still have a lot to learn, don't I?"

She eyed him critically before giving a derisive snort, hoping desperately her charade wasn't being seen through. "Y-You've got the important parts down, I'll give you that. A little more confidence couldn't hurt though."

The elder vampire's face reddened. "I'll try."

"So where's your scaled clip-on? You're usually never out of her sight."

"Rei-chan's been moved to Paradise for now. The headmaster thought it would be a good idea for her to get back in touch with her instincts, and she'll have more food there."

Kokoa nodded approvingly. "Sounds like something you could use."

His eyes darkened while a dry smile formed on his lips. "You're not the first one to say that."

Though confused at the reaction, the vindicated smile back was deserved. "Great minds think alike! Who said it before?"

The question seemingly shook him out of something, and when he grinned next it was probably meant as disarming, but she could tell it was defensive. He had always been a terrible liar. "No one; forget I said that."

She sighed. _The guy couldn't lie to save his life, but I guess that does have a certain charm to it too. _Inspiration must have hit him, because his eyes lit up in a way that told her he had figured out something.

"If you're not here for your column then, why are you here?"

_Smooth recovery; he's actually getting better,_ she thought appreciatively, but outwardly said, "Nothing really, I just thought I'd walk around for a while. Force of habit. I heard the duo wasn't in school today, how you holding up?"

His face scrunched up as he tried to figure out what she meant, and she almost thought he looked cute before she strangled the notion. "Oh! You mean for blood! I was able to find Ruby before school started, but I should probably have supper soon if you get what I mean."

She chuckled calmly, but inside she was practically jumping up and down. She didn't even need to think of an excuse! "W-Well, since I'm here anyways…I c-could always give you some of mine." Her faux-haughty demeanour nearly shattered when he looked at her sceptically, and now she did scramble for an excuse. "I-I told you before d-didn't I? Disgrace my race or Onee-sama and I'll kill you! Staying healthy is part of that!"

He flinched back instinctively. "S-Sorry, it was just a shock, that's all. This is the longest you've talked to me since I bit you the first time. To be honest, I thought you'd rather kill me than let me do it again!"

It was her turn to look sheepish, and the faintest of blushes momentarily covered her cheeks. _If you only knew…_ True to Kokoa logic however, her hair-trigger temper flared to hide her discomfort. "D-Do you want me to bite you first or something so you'll feel better!"

An eyebrow quirked curiously, but he made no move to disprove the query. "If you want; it feels weird to be given so much without expecting anything in return. At least the headmaster's honest about it! I don't suck Moka's blood too often unless I can restock quickly, because she usually needs some then too. If you want some every now and then, I can't really say no, now can I? If you're nice enough to give me blood, I should do the same, shouldn't I?"

His selfless thought-process was tremendously confusing…and slightly pointless if she was being blunt, but she knew the importance the act held. Just to know the offer was there was honouring in itself. Suddenly hesitant, she walked forward shakily until she was right in front of him, and his smell made both her fangs and her thighs throb.

"Are you sure?"

He smiled another of his carefree grins, and her chest constricted again. "Sure. What's a little blood between friends?"

She pushed the words out of her mind as she sunk her teeth into his neck, and almost instantly her every nerve sparked to life. His blood…there was no way to describe the taste. She had never taken directly from the source before, but she knew no other could compare to this. It was hot, bubbling with life and unknowable power. This was more than she could have ever expected. It was positively addicting. _Is this what the blood of a Tested tastes like?_

She had to have _more_.

"Kokoa-chan…" Tsukune groaned weakly when he felt her dig into his flesh harder than before. He could feel himself weakening, almost alarmingly so. His fingers were losing feeling, and even his sight was darkening, but she showed no signs of stopping. "Kokoa…chan…!" Summoning the last of his strength, he shoved his fangs into the nearest available piece of her skin, and the shock made her let him go right away. As she shook in the sudden influx of pleasure, Tsukune greedily took back what he needed to live. Maybe it was because he had more experience taking from people personally, but he was able to stop when he knew he had taken enough and she wouldn't be harmed by it.

They were both gasping when he pushed her away, for different reasons admittedly, and Kokoa looked rightfully terrified when she realized what had almost happened. "Tsukune, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to—"

"Stop," he interrupted as he wiped his now sweaty forehead. "It's okay. You're not used to it, I get that. No harm no foul. Maybe next time we'll have to have a witness just in case, hey?"

How the idiot could still sound so kind and understanding when she had almost taken his very life before his eyes was beyond her, and though the pleasure had been just as wonderful as she had remembered it, how she had gotten it left a bitter taste in her mouth. She had meant to give him a reason to bite her back, not make it a life-or-death scenario! She didn't even want to think of what her sister would have done to her had she accidentally done so.

"Let's do that," she agreed sullenly, more disgusted with herself than anything as she walked to the door. She had never felt bad about drinking blood before, but she couldn't believe what she had almost done to her sister.

"Kokoa-chan?" His voice stopped her just as her hand was on the doorknob, and unwillingly she looked back at him. To her surprise, he was smiling. "Remember what I said: don't worry about it. You'll just hurt yourself if you do, believe me. The same thing's happened to me."

As much as she wanted to snarl insults back at him, she knew he wasn't lying about that. His concern was actually touching, and she found herself smiling back at him. "Don't worry about me, idiot…one of these days that kindness of yours if gonna come back to haunt you."

As she left the room, she honestly believed that.

…

The day passed uneventfully after that for the most part, and though Moka had been planning to only let him recover for a day, complications involving a certain catty teacher and an impossible deadline had worn out any ideas she might have had. Mizore and Kurumu had come back with little fanfare, or as little fanfare as was possible for them. The succubus had been practically _radiating_ sexuality; more so than usual, which was no small feat.

Her fan-club had literally fallen over themselves trying to get pictures, and the vampiress knew her friend had come into one of the other known powers of Succubae. Many had forgotten it, but it had once been well-known that with a strong enough mate they could siphon excess energy through a physical connection, and being sealed Tsukune was nothing but an abundance of surplus Youki with no way to access it. She more than likely didn't even have any idea of what she had done, but what was certain was the violet-eyed illusionist had taken a place amongst nearly the highest ranking of her race.

Of course, Succubae could also siphon energy regardless of how strong their lover was, but they were creatures of pleasure, not pain—unless provoked, naturally. Only the more twisted of their race took from those not able to give. It was a sad fact that during the warring eras they took what they could get, even if it meant taking from unsuspecting humans, which gave them their legends among them.

Regardless, she knew the Black and White Duet would only be better because of it, and that was a good omen. It wasn't like she was about to let them have all the fun. She had made sure that tonight Tsukune would be coming for a cooking lesson, and it seemed her promise of showing him his place again had slipped his mind. Needless to say, she had everything _but_ cooking in mind. She was already dressed in her comfy flannel pyjamas to greet him, and when he was lulled into a false sense of security she would show him the even _more_ comfortable silk nightgown she had on underneath.

She couldn't wait to see the look on his face.

A knock on the door forced her out of her thoughts, and she looked over at her clock in confusion. There was still plenty of time until their predetermined rendezvous; she wasn't ready yet! Cursing that the dorm rooms didn't have peepholes to see who was at the door, she called out, "Just a second, I'll be right there!"

The horrible sound of wood giving way tore the air, and Moka Akashiya's blood ran cold when she looked to where her door had been so savagely ripped. Red eyes looked back at her, and she could see the dull grey hair on top of the man's head. He wasn't dressed like a student of the academy, instead like a runway model, and he wore no seal that she could see. What scared her most was it was most assuredly _not_ Tsukune.

"I'm happy to make your acquaintance at long last, Moka Shuzen. Your father sends his regards."

She was sure her heart stopped beating. _"Tsukune!"_

…

That call passed through the room, out the entrance, and into the forest, and though it had long since died by the time it would have reached the men's dormitory, the plant life thought dead wasn't about to let this cry go unheard. They knew it belonged to someone special to one of the few left that could hear their voice, the one vampire that happened to be attuned to nature itself. He heard that terrified cry like he had been standing right outside her door, and his eyes jerked to the direction of the scream.

"Moka!"

He didn't know what had happened, all he knew was she needed him.

He wasn't about to let her down.

…

**Author's Notes:** I had hoped to make this chapter shorter, but there were so many things I wanted to cover before I got to the end it ended up being twenty-four pages long again. Again, I'm sorry for the wait, but again, I hope the quality makes up for it.

I have to say, I was hoping my goal/challenge would be met, but you guys blew it out of the water! I'm so thankful for all you reviewers I can't say it enough! My only goal this time is to get as many as I did last time! Thank you so much everyone; your thoughts are always considered as I'm writing and your encouragement always welcome! Seriously, thank you so much! I'd thank you all individually but that would take too long, LOL!

As you might have noticed, I'm wondering what to do with Kokoa. She clearly doesn't love Tsukune like the others do in the manga—at least not yet that we've been shown—and I've gone with that, but I have made her realistic to what's happened in my story. I'm simply wondering your thoughts on the matter, and what might happen in the future regarding her. I've got plenty of ideas, believe me, but I thought I'd ask you all since you're going to tell me what you think of this chapter already, right? LOL!

Anywho, if you've got any questions regarding this chapter, I'll simply say they'll be cleared up next chapter, and if not, sometime later on. Trust me on this. If you're wondering about that latest chapter of the manga, I'll just say I'm disappointed. We all knew something like that was going to happen, but I'm disappointed it didn't come during a more climactic time. Ever since the beginning I've pretty much thought her rosary was a prison in more than one sense. If she wanted to search for her mother among the humans, she had to live as close to them as possible. For such a life-threatening seal, the fact that she couldn't remove it on her own like Kahlua could, meant she wasn't supposed to be able to at all. Clearly I've had this repaired since the start of my story.

As for what happens next…until next chapter, dear reader.

I hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Sabr.


	13. To Hurt A Vampire

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Rosario+Vampire, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story. Simple enough, ne? Just don't copy from this story and we're all good!

…

**To Hurt A Vampire**

…

"I'm happy to make your acquaintance at long last, Moka Shuzen. Your father sends his regards."

She was sure her heart stopped beating. _"Tsukune!"_

That call passed through the room, out the entrance, and into the forest, and though it had long since died by the time it would have reached the men's dormitory, the plant life thought dead wasn't about to let this cry go unheard. They knew it belonged to someone special to one of the few left that could hear their voice, the one vampire that happened to be attuned to nature itself. He heard that terrified cry like he had been standing right outside her door, and his eyes jerked to the direction of the scream.

"Moka!"

He didn't know what had happened, all he knew was she needed him.

He wasn't about to let her down.

…

How long does it take a life of but eighteen years to flash before the eyes of one staring into the equivalent of a death sentence? Moka Akashiya found out it took less than a second. From the instant she saw those dark ruby irises looking at her, everything she had ever known, all the things she had come to hope for in the future, all of it came to mind, and just as simultaneously shattered. She reacted on nothing but impulse, hoping beyond any hope she had left that her bond with her eternal mate would let him hear it. The one downside above all others was it was very unlikely he was close to the dorm at all, and time was something she had just run out of.

It didn't take long for the figure to appear before her, one hand clasped forcefully in her hair, pushing her head into the other which held its place over her mouth and halted any further pleas for help. Her green eyes were wide with fright as she was forced to stare directly into the vampiric counterparts of her intruder, but his face on the other hand was nothing but cool superiority, even bordering on sardonic pity.

"Now now now, that won't do. To think your beauty and power has been sealed so completely the first thing that comes to mind is to squeal for help like a pitiful human. You disappoint me, Shuzen-san."

Eyes once fearful hardened in anger, and without a second thought she bit deep into the palm of the other vampire, determined to let him know she wasn't going down without a fight. The blood was simply a nice side-effect. The man snarled in pain as he tore himself away, and just as quickly backhanded her with his good hand before putting the rapidly disappearing injury to his mouth. Moka didn't know if he had held back or not, but even if he had she was struck with a good amount of force. She was left on the ground holding her throbbing cheek, in nothing but her pyjamas, glaring down an unsealed member of her own race.

The only other time she had felt so helpless was looking on at Tsukune's outstretched hand, so close and yet so far, unable to even reach her rosary under Kuyou's punishment. She couldn't, _wouldn't_, back down now, however; she needed to buy time. _Someone_ must have heard the commotion going on in her room. "My name is Moka _Akashiya_, you sore excuse for a vampire!"

Once again his face warped into something far more dangerous, but this time he held himself back from striking her. "It is true, compared to you I am little in my power, but _I_ am not cursed as you are, fool. The Dark Lord Shuzen would be mortified to see his daughter in such a state from a blow like that, but maybe not, since he _did_ design your prison. But wonders never cease, do they, for what should reach his ears but the tale of a beautiful vampiress involved in a terrible battle, and of all the conclusions finish with a kiss? Let me assure you, he has not forgotten you, and neither has he forgotten your mother. He entertained the notion of your expedition into the Human World as a childish delusion, but when the rumors of an unsealing can be confirmed by your sister's own mouth…it was decided you should be reminded your place. If that fight did indeed mean what I think it meant, you should be prepared for a rather uncomfortable break-up."

Every instinct, including the ones supposedly hampered by the seal, rose up ferociously and she hissed at him in a way only a vampire could. "I do _not_ belong to my father! My life is _mine_, and my heart is my own to give away!"

Amusement bubbled into his eyes, and he laughed as he effortlessly picked her up by the throat and held her in front of him. He was just as tall as Tsukune, if not taller, and her feet dangled above the ground as she fought to get air back into her lungs. Cruelty was the only thing she saw in him as he moved his face closer, and she was actually glad she couldn't breathe, because then she couldn't smell his breath.

"Foolish girl, your life has never been your own. Your heart? Love? Love is below us, Shuzen-san. We are _vampires_, we are _immortal._ Others are _playthings_ next to us! You could be sent off as a pawn for an alliance for thirty _years_ and not care! You are his _daughter_, and he has been planning your life for a long, long time. The list of your suitors grows longer by the week, and with this latest rumor running about he has been far less inclined to let you continue this farce!"

Moka was actually stunned into complete silence by his last words, but the rage came back, stronger than ever, fueled by the deeper, far darker hatred burning in her inner self. If her attacker had expected anything, it certainly wouldn't have been for her to spit in his face, and she took great pride in the look that appeared on it when he realized what she had done. His fingers shook around her neck, and for a moment she feared he would crush her windpipe in his fight to keep his calm. Instead he settled for throwing her violently against a wall, and her body left a dent in the drywall before she fell to the bed beneath, gasping and coughing both for air and to recover from the impact. The pain meant nothing to her, it only focused her will against him.

"No," she rasped at last, determination etched into every strand of pitch she had left. Her glare did great justice to the one within the Rosario, and the vampire stepped back against his own volition. "_You're_ below _love_. My father loved my mom once, I know he did. As a matter of fact I'd bet he _still_ loves her, somewhere in that thing that might have once been a heart. The fact that you're spewing that junk about love means you're nothing more than a pawn too, a purist punk too blinded by his own sense of superiority to know anything but what his supposed 'betters' tell him! You're _nothing_ to them in both worth _and_ power; the only reason you're not nothing to _me_ is because of this seal! What did he promise you? What great _reward_ would you get for going to his daughter's school and lecturing her about her _place?_"

Inner and Outer were synched more than they ever had been, their every thought so alike the words they thought and the words they spoke were one and the same. The only difference was, 'Outer' lacked the power to truly intimidate him. The smile on his face warped into something that turned her stomach, and as he started walking toward her she felt it twist with each step. Her righteous indignation faltered as she scrambled back, away from the predator stalking its way to her, the weakest prey. Bile threatened to leave her body when he at last perched over her, one arm against the wall by her head, and his free hand trailing up her neck…her jaw…skin only one had touched before. With a sickly sweet tone that raised gooseflesh on her skin, he whispered the most damning word of all:

"You."

He took delight in the way her eyes widened, the way the stench of true fear began emanating from her far stronger. She was powerless in front of him, and he knew it. "I'm your first suitor, the first contract you'll get to fulfill. I was but a child when I first heard the stories of your prowess, and I'll admit I'm disappointed that I won't be able to meet your real form. Alas, it's better this way. As you said, were it not for that seal I have little doubt of your ability to hold true to your words, but that's the catch, is it not? You are a pawn, Moka-chan, no matter how much you try to deny it, how far you try to run from it, you are and always will be a subordinate to your father. Either as an enforcer or an enticement, _that_ is your fate. The sooner you accept that the better. I may not have you for long, but I'll be certain you'll remember it. You may call me Alexander, but 'master' is just as well."

It was only then that he noticed his words were becoming visible in the air, and the chill literally gripped him around the back of his neck in the form of a firm, unrelenting grip. One look at his would-be captive showed him the relief and awe on her face, and he knew it wasn't directed at him. Ice itself breathed into his ear as the figure he now sensed behind him leaned over, and when it spoke he felt it fire down his spine the same way only one had invoked before.

"You will not _touch_ her in any way; you will not _look_ at her in any way; you will not _breathe_ the same _air_ as her ever, _ever_ again, so help me _God_. If you ever lay a _finger_ on my mate again, I swear on every drop of blood I have in me that I will make you _wish_ you were _dead!_"

"Allow me to make it easier for you then, for I will simply drain you of every drop now!" the unsealed vampire hissed unexpectedly, and before anyone in the room had time to react he had twisted in place and sent a perfectly aimed punch at where he inferred his new opponent's face to be. It hit its mark flawlessly, and without the door to halt the resulting recoil, Tsukune's only impediment was the guardrail before he fell from the building and to the ground below.

Casting a delightedly menacing look at Moka, he grabbed hold of her again before pursuing his fallen challenger. To say he was surprised to see the other man already getting up by the time he had jumped from the upper level was an understatement, and there was very little sign of any mark from his punch. He would have thought it impossible if he wasn't witnessing it with his own eyes. He couldn't let it affect his demeanor though; he needed to show his new courtesan who ruled their relationship.

"Did you say 'mate', whelp? You dare to assume a vampiress such as her would allow one such as you to claim that title!"

"I don't _assume_ anything!" Tsukune retorted furiously as he was forced to look at his lover held in the grasp of another man. "She was the one that gave it to me!"

Alexander was taken aback by the defence, and the gaze he set on Moka then held nothing but molten fury, if not pure disgust. "So not only did you accept another, but you call him your _mate?_ I expected so much more from you, I can only imagine your father's reaction."

In the hold of one whom could easily kill her if he so wished, the pink-haired woman still found the strength to smile victoriously. "No, not mate. I've found my _blood_-mate."

His suddenly slackened expression showed all too clearly how well he understood what she meant. She could hear his teeth grinding together when his mind came around, and the fury she had seen before had increased exponentially. "A…bonded pair? Do you claim to have chosen him for _life?_"

Smugness radiated from her every pore, despite the position she was in. "I'm my own person, _Alex-chan._ Even if my father set me up with a _real_ vampire, and not a weak _lackey_ like you, he wouldn't come close to my Tsukune. Even if I was locked away for the rest of my life, he would be the only one on my mind! As long as I still breathe, he's mine and I'm his!"

"A situation easily remedied, my dear," her captor promised darkly. "I may not be allowed to harm you too critically, but I was given express permission to deal with whoever thought they could be with the daughter of Lord Shuzen without his consent. Once he lies dead, you will remember your place!"

Her eyes darkened hatefully and even from where he was, Tsukune could honestly say that it was the first time he could remember Moka's outer form visibly malicious. She snarled right back at him in a perfect imitation of the self sealed inside, and made every effort to meet his glare with one twice as powerful. "Then I'll tell you this: for every mark you make on him I'll return it with interest, and if he dies, I'll tear out your beating heart with my bare hands before I join him."

"I'd like to see you make good on that, weakling," he responded snidely. Turning to where Tsukune was biding his time, he smirked. "A mate is no longer a mate when dead."

Using the grip he had on her collar to his advantage, Alexander pulled her to him without warning. In less time than there was to process that action he had already stolen her lips. Tears fell from Moka's appalled eyes as she was forced into him, and though she lacked power, she still had fangs. With as much force as she could muster she bit hard into his lower lip, and he howled in pain as he threw her away from him. She hit the dorm hard, cracked sickeningly against the concrete and plaster and down to the ground, where she moved no more.

For a moment, there was nothing but silence.

Cold rage embraced Tsukune, an instinctual fury that demanded the other man pay for violating what was most certainly not _his_. He had never been the most confident, nor had he ever been prone to fits of anger, but seeing _that_ brought on one of the most intense rages he had ever felt. As his fingernails started digging into his palm he was briefly aware of the icy sensation surrounding them, but he couldn't be bothered to care. Something else commanded his full attention, and sealed or not, he would do as much as he could to ensure she was safe.

Satisfied he had gotten his point across, the other vampire wiped the blood off his lips before returning his view to where Tsukune should have been. "There, now where were w—!"

He was cut off fiercely by the frozen fist that caught him square in the jaw, and his body had no choice but to follow the force of the punch and send him careening into the trees off to the side. His head pounded as he tried to recover in the clearing he had created, and with a grunt of pain he repositioned his broken jaw back into place so his regeneration could take over. The sight that greeted his swimming vision when he gazed forward brought about conflicting emotions, but nonetheless he chuckled when he saw the man calmly—_too_ calmly—walking to him.

Humidity once in the air was being turned to frosty mist, casting their newfound arena into an ephemeral beauty reminiscent of morning fog at sunrise. It crawled over the ground in waves, seeping into the space between the leafless trees and around the tombstones littering the area. With evening approaching and the sun giving way to the moon, it set the very atmosphere into a sense of foreboding, and at its center was the focal point of the picture of mysticism. A being with hands of pure ice stalked towards him, and from looking at him he never would have suspected he was angry in the way he held himself. It was proud, straight; a gait held by those sure of an outcome. It was his eyes that held his intentions, a vengeance that could be seen clearly in the ethereal light reflecting from his mirror-like arms.

The vampire that called himself Alexander merely laughed as he picked himself up and tested his jaw. "Are you serious? She refused one of her own kind for the hand of a dying race? You are indeed a rarity, whelp; men are being born less and less to the Snow People. If this is the amount of power I can expect from one, I can see why. Tell me, did you get your powers from a magical hat found by schoolchildren?"

"I could say the same to you," Tsukune answered coldly, too far gone into his one-minded desire to see the other man pay to realize what he was doing unthinkingly. "Moka probably has more power in one strand of her hair than you do in your entire body. I can tell just from looking at you that you're much weaker than you think you are, or did you think I didn't notice how dull your hair is?"

"You will not talk down to me, inferior brat!"

Red youki flamed to life around him, painting the white fog around them into bloody mist as he charged forward, and it was only Tsukune's training with Inner Moka that saved his life. His reflexes forced him to react before his mind was even aware of what was happening, and the kick that passed through where his head had been seconds earlier utterly demolished the tree behind it. Suddenly Tsukune wasn't so confident anymore.

_Dammit, I can't take a hit like that with this seal on; I'd get torn to pieces!_ With it off he knew he could stand up to Moka's inner self on even ground, but with it on his options were severely limited. He couldn't allow that to hamper his resolve; for once everything relied on him, and he wasn't about to back out, not after what that vampire had done to his mate.

He spread his senses outward as much as he could, relying as much on his sight as he was his preternatural radar, one of the few abilities not completely snuffed out by his rosary. Alexander was taller, but he was faster, and combined with his finely-honed reactions he was able to narrowly avoid every one of the other man's strikes. He knew had he been facing Moka he would have been destroyed by then, but there was something to be thankful for in the weaker vampire he was facing. He was still a vampire, and 'weaker' just meant he had a chance to survive as long as he stayed clear of his blows.

The mist was a blessing, because his opponent just lashed out blindly, too enraged to consider using his other senses like Tsukune had already started doing long before. With each attack that was dodged the other male became visibly angrier, and that was exactly what the former human wanted. It was time he started fighting back.

The next punch came right where he expected it, and with a quick sidestep he ducked under the arm and landed two solid strikes to Alexander's side. As the other monster coughed from the unexpected force behind the masterful chops, Tsukune spun low on the ball of his foot, flipping his foe's feet right out from under him and sending him flailing to the ground. Alex managed to recover his equilibrium just in time to his chagrin, because if he hadn't rolled away when he had a foot would have planted itself in his stomach. The would-be kidnapper didn't let the second of opportunity go to waste however and immediately kicked behind his knee, earning a pained cry as he was forced down, and thus unable to dodge the follow-up kick that he just barely managed to block with his arms.

He instantly wished he hadn't.

Pain rocketed up his arms like lightning as his fingers simultaneously lost feeling, and he suspected were it not for whatever transformed them they would have broken just as easily. He strangled the cry before it left his throat, but that was all the time Alex needed to hit his unprotected head. Tsukune's vision blurred as he was sent careening into a gravestone, and it was by pure instinct that he moved before it was decimated by his adversary's next punch. It was vastly apparent that he was outmatched in almost every way as he was, and just one moment of weakness had increased the odds against him more than he could afford to allow. He grasped desperately at his shirt, through the numbness gradually dimming in his fingers to claw at what he knew was underneath, and was horrified when the holy metal repelled him as if on fire.

_I thought he said life or death! I'm pretty sure this counts as a life-or-death situation here!_ Tsukune yelled frantically, but if the divine seal heard him it gave no indication of it. Just like that his hope dimmed dramatically, but he wasn't permitted to dwell on it for he soon had to evade the next incoming attempt on his health.

"What's wrong, Frosty? Lost your pipe?"

It was a tribute to his resolve that he managed to weave his way through every one of the volley being sent his way, and with just enough feeling restored in his hands to be useful he caught the man unaware, viciously slamming his fist back into the grey-haired vampire's gut. Said vampire staggered back, coughing and panting as he tried to keep whatever might have been in his stomach down, and Tsukune managed a dark smirk.

"Not such a jolly, happy, soul, now am I, huh?"

Alexander growled lowly and this time he simply charged the young man in a full football tackle. Catching him around the waist he dove into the nearest tree, and grinned darkly when he heard the ice-wielder cough wetly when he pulled away to let him slump to the ground. Blood was indeed dribbling from the fool's mouth as his now normal limbs shook, likely trying to raise his body up again, but he wouldn't allow that. Lifting the person that had dared insult him up by his collar, he was enraged to see no fear on his beaten face even as he cocked back his fist. Only determination was in those honey-brown orbs, and he felt a glimmer of respect for the other man.

"I suppose I can see some of what she saw in you. It's almost too bad."

"Yeah…it is…" Tsukune groaned, and shocked his oppressor by fixing a fighting gaze back at him right after. "Too bad you let me catch my breath."

Vines shot up from all around them, securing Alexander in place in an ever-constricting vice that left him helpless when his once-captive lifted his feet and launched them right into his chest. Confusion was foremost in his mind when he was blasted away—though pain was a close second—because the vines hadn't offered any resistance to his flight, almost like they hadn't been there at all. He wasn't given any time to think it over, and now it was him on the defensive.

Tsukune knew he stood no chance, in fact _moving_ hurt, but if the best defence was a good offence, he wasn't going to give the other vampire the chance to attack. With his hands once more coated in ice, two successive open-palm thrusts at his chest made the man stumble back wildly, gasping for the air suddenly shot from his lungs, and Tsukune took the opening to grab his head and pull it down to meet his approaching knee. Blood flew from his nose while he punched out wildly, but in that state Tsukune was more than able to avoid the flailing strikes, and jumped into a flurry of punches that knocked the battered vampire every which way before rods of ice joined in, hammering home the extra strength their creator currently lacked.

When at last Alexander fell, broken and bloody, the remaining male sighed painfully. "And stay down." Pressing his hand against his cheek, he nearly whimpered at the cold temperature on his swollen skin. "Jeez, that'll take a while to heal, but at least Moka's safe. Still, I really need to talk to Mizore about _this_," he concluded curiously, looking at his unused hand, far from what it should be.

Turning back to check Moka's condition, he froze when a hand gripped his shoulder harshly and twirled him back to the furious form of the vampire Alexander.

"My turn, whelp."

…

It was another perfectly glorious day in her opinion. Finding a cave hadn't been that easy, which meant that she had had to make one herself in one of the mountains she had found. It wasn't an easy task since she had to take into account how much she could grow, but if worse came to worst she could always make a new one. It had done wonders to sharpen her talons though, and she was quite happy with that. The only thing that would make it better would be if her partner was with her, but she understood necessity.

The thrill of the hunt was intoxicating, watching the little vermin squeal and run when they saw her shadow approach, but by then it was too late. She was queen of the skies, mistress of Mother Nature, and the protector of the only vampire to ever earn a dragon's respect. Her partner was a truly confusing conundrum, but that was part of the reason she had chosen him. Every once in a while he could be a bit dense but he had wisdom beyond his years where it mattered. He was kind, yet had still learned the inevitability of force and held others above himself even _with_ that. He was as rare as she was in a way, and she could understand that even though she had only been alive for a scant few weeks. She was proud to call him her partner.

The hooded man that had sealed him on other hand, _he_ she was annoyed with. She had known her partner's potential from the moment she had gained awareness, and though she was thoroughly enjoying Paradise, she couldn't help but be worried for his safety without her there. She knew he had plenty of other nest-mates but she had a sinking feeling not all of them understood just what had been done to him. Riddles were something she had learned she enjoyed but he took the concept to an entirely new level, and wasn't afraid to endanger others to find the answer. This world was so much better than the realm her partner was in, there was no question about that, but there was a part of her that wanted frantically to return just to be safe.

Smoke puffed from her nostrils as she grunted in annoyance, forced to rely on her one and only treasure to calm her frayed nerves. Not only was it a gift from her mother, but her partner as well; what had spawned their whole situation in the first place. It most assuredly was _not_ a security blanket—a security _shirt_, maybe? Nonetheless, it carried his scent, and that was the only thing that had kept her from running rampant when she realized how long the weeks until Summer Break were. At least she always had a full belly here, and a never-ending amount of new places to explore. It would be a long time until she had exhausted _that_ time-killer.

Curling up in the groove her body had created in the rock of her cave, sleep seemed like a good idea as she nestled the ragged shirt. She was probably just being paranoid anyway. How much trouble could her nestling get into in just a few days?

The part of her unequivocally tied to the young man in question started ringing hysterically, the instinctive trait always attuned to his location and wellbeing. There hadn't been so much as a peep from that part of her ever since she had been born; she had been the only one to use their bond for anything. The way it was ringing within her suggested he probably wasn't even doing it on purpose, and that scared her more than anything.

Frightened whimpers escaped her menacing mouth as she shot from her cave and took to the skies, following that cry to where she knew that strange door awaited. Animals and monsters alike ran in fear as the ground shook beneath their feet from her gallop, and when her powerful wings pulled her bulk into the atmosphere, birds scattered. She had never flown with such determination before, and in no time at all she was in front of the marble gateway to her partner's realm.

Scratching despondently at the closed door, she had never experienced fear the likes of which embraced her when the marks from her talons faded like the door itself had a will of its own.

…

Bruised and battered, the sealed vampire tried his best to trap in ice the livid man intent on delivering the most pain he could before he finished the job. It never lasted long; thankfully it slowed him down regardless.

He had never wished his rosary would come off so much before. Even if he could just flare his youki, at least someone would be alerted to what was going on! He didn't know how much longer he would be able to hold off this force. His bones were already protesting, and if he hadn't had his limited regeneration his muscles would have given out long ago.

A harsh punch toppled him and his left eye was now sealed shut, black and blue. His split lip throbbed, and if he didn't know any better he would think some of his _organs_ were bruised. The only eye currently working managed to focus in on a form off to the side, and he smiled weakly when he saw it move. _She's alright, thank God._

Drawing on every reserve his present form had to give, he pushed himself upright and wiped his mouth while he glared down the smug Alexander.

He couldn't back down. He wouldn't. Even if he died trying, he would fight until their friends found them.

…

Scorched earth lay everywhere around the dimensional anomaly, but still the stone door showed no sign of change. An infuriated roar caused the very earth to tremble as another salvo of molten death was unleashed upon the locked entrance, and she might have admired the destruction caused by her newly-discovered ability was she not so mad it was having no effect whatsoever.

He needed her! He was right behind that door and he needed her! She would have cried had she known how. Why could all those tiny, two-legged beings lacking even the protective covering of scales walk right through like it was nothing, and nothing _she_ could do would make even a scratch! She stilled while she seethed inwardly, focusing on the shirt she hadn't had the time to leave behind. She needed to be calm. Calm. Calm…

She smashed her head against the door with enough force to topple a building, and it just stared back, mocking her for disregarding her own advice. Steel-grey eyes glared back.

His smell, she focused on his smell. If only she was like him, then she would be able to reach him. His smell…she focused on his smell. If only she had those fleshy, fingered appendages instead of the ideal weapons of her fierce talons. His smell…she focused on…his smell. If only she was smaller, if only she had those lanky, unbalanced pairs of transportation instead of the perfection of her four-legged self. His smell…she focused on his smell…

If only…if only…

In the realm of Paradise, two small hands pushed open a door.

…

Alexander was starting to get seriously annoyed.

_The fool just doesn't know when to quit!_ He thought angrily as he delivered what should have been another bone-crushing blow to the younger man's body.

No matter the injury incurred or the obvious pain he was in, he kept getting back up, and kept trying his hardest to hurt him back. The mind-boggling thing was, he was actually succeeding! He looked like he could hardly move, yet he still managed to evade nearly every attack sent his way and deliver ones of his own before he was finally hit! He had never seen such tenacity in the Snow People before; he couldn't understand how he continued getting up after blows that had made stronger monsters cry for mercy.

_Just what are you made of!_

Tsukune wasn't running on anything his body had to give, he was running on sheer force of will. The thought had come to mind to treat the rosary like he had once his Holy Lock, but the second he had tried finding any of his power to redirect—if it was indeed possible—it felt like he had secured a noose around his neck. The holy cross was a force to be reckoned with, and it was growing exceedingly warmer with every passing second he fought. Even with all that, not once did it give way to his pleading pulls.

Mist followed their every limb in lingering trails, giving evidence to each strike before the next for both tattered combatants. That sight of unearthly, almost unreal violence was what greeted five women when they returned to the dorm, four of whom had been asked to help clean up the mess in the clubroom of the day before by the fifth. At the time it might have been to help out a certain vampiress' plan of getting her vampire to her room unnoticed, yet Ruby was quickly realizing that to be a mistake looking at the situation around her.

A choked cry caught their attention and was soon punctuated by an explosion of dust from the side wall of the dorm, where looking back, only one of the two fighters stood where both had previously. It was easy to see who too.

"Tsukune!" came the collective shriek, while Kokoa had honed in on the other prone form lying near his impact point.

The oppressor was thrown off by the sudden turn of events, and he was sure he wouldn't like the new way it had chosen. He had to give the boy props though, not even he had had so many women around him at any one time, and certainly not out of _concern_. The addition of Moka's younger sister wasn't too much of a problem—he had a way of dealing with her—but there was no way of knowing the abilities of the others, and he was running low on stamina as it was. He needed blood, and if things continued the way they had been he might just have to take from what was available, willing or not. It wasn't like anyone was focused on him at the moment.

Though they were all having trouble believing the state Tsukune was in, there was more than some shock being held at what he had been able to do to a vampire, lesser or not, sealed. It made sense that no matter how hard he tried there just wasn't any way for him to stand up to something of their caliber. His face was in various stages of bruising and his lips were cut and bloody, but what made it worse was those were the mildest wounds on him. They were simply the most visible. His hands had returned to normal from their icy appearance, and they too looked worse for wear.

"What happened here!" Kurumu blubbered, torn between taking him into her arms and keeping him at a distance just so she didn't aggravate already excruciating injuries.

"Not…going…to…let him…take Moka…away," Tsukune seethed, only semi-conscious by this point. They couldn't believe his arms could even move in their condition, nonetheless they had braced themselves on his throne of rubble and were pushing their broken body up yet again. His teeth were barred angrily and he looked the very vision of fury, however that wasn't what had one woman's attention. Ruby was almost too shocked to do anything when she saw a glowing outline shining from underneath his shirt, growing ever brighter, and quickly pushed him back down.

"Tsukune, stop, you're in no shape to do anything anymore! Leave this to us!"

His only working eye tried without success to focus on the source of the voice, but somewhere in him he was able to understand who was speaking. "Ru…Ruby…?"

She could have cried. "Yes, Tsukune, it's me. We're here now."

"M-Moka…?"

"I'll be fine," a voice answered from their side, and they looked over to see Moka being supported heavily by Kokoa. She hadn't restrained herself, and tears were wet on her face as she looked at what only vaguely resembled her unwavering protector. "Tsukune…what has he done to you?"

A choked sound that might have been a laugh was coughed from him. "Oh…this? It's a…long story. Fell down some… stairs…you know…the usual."

The vampiress would have hit him for his attempt at humor if he didn't look like he had already been hit by a truck. She couldn't stop the reluctant chuckle that was forced from her throat, and wiped ineffectually at her tear stains. "That's not funny."

Broken lips curled up into a pained grin. "Got you…to laugh…didn't it? Tears….don't suit…you." He trailed off into wet coughs that sounded downright awful, and Moka looked up angrily to see Alexander right behind their friends.

"I hope you haven't forgotten about me. No matter how many zeroes you have to protect you, zero times zero is still zero."

Kurumu and Mizore straightened rigidly, wordlessly taking their places beside each other while their combined glare bored into him. "We'll see about that."

The situation was ripe for a new conflict, and it came, just not in the form anyone had expected.

A red and white blur of motion collided with the male antagonist, sending him clear off his feet and into the glen off to the side once more. What stood in his place was a child that couldn't have been more than ten years old, naked but for a ragged white shirt dyed almost completely red covering her modesty. While Tsukune's skin was naturally dark, hers was a shade darker, and brilliant white hair stood up in messy spikes on top of her head. She didn't even spare a second glance at the person she had just sent flying, instead quickly turning towards the group huddled around Tsukune with nothing but distress warping her cute face. The young girl wasted no time pushing through the line of defence surrounding him, with little difficulty at that, and Kurumu regained her wits at the rough shove that held strength far beyond the girl's small size. Catching her by the arm, her breath caught when the child turned to snarl at her.

At the center of those dark, endearing features, right under the pair of white eyebrows that matched her hair perfectly, were two eyes the color of bright polished steel.

"Kurumu…it's okay…" Tsukune groaned, once again struggling to lift himself up. This time it was the girl who pushed him down, then with no hesitation dug her sharp teeth into her wrist before holding it to his mouth. Every thought vanished from his mind under the smell of the offering, and his weak body eagerly drank from the flowing wound. Those around him watched his flesh knit slowly right in front of their eyes when he pulled back with a gasp, his eyes wild with an actual lust for blood. He dove back for more like a madman, and when the others reached out to stop him it was the _girl_ that held out her hand to halt _them_.

"I have more blood than this appearance suggests. Do not worry for my safety. Save for removing his rosary so his true blood can heal him, my healing factor is what he needs right now," she explained calmly. While her voice held the same pitch as any child her age, it also held a deeper sense of understanding in the unusually smoky tone, and displayed an equally unusual formal style of speaking. It was almost like the words themselves were on fire, and they knew when she grew older her voice was going to be unbelievable. Just looking at the tone of her small body heralded the traces of what was bound to become a killer physique, but the question on their minds revolved around _who_ she was to know so much.

"I don't believe it…" Ruby murmured silently as the child ran a hand through the feeding vampire's dirty hair, unbothered by how long he was taking on her arm. If he had fed that long from any of them he would have killed them without fail, and right in front of her he was still drinking from a girl smaller than _Yukari_.

When Tsukune lifted his head for air his breathing was noticeably easier, and though bruises still discolored his skin they were slowly vanishing. Even his swollen eye almost looked like it could be opened again. He collapsed into the rubble his impact had caused while gulping in heavy breaths, like his lungs had been too damaged to before. With a sigh, his good eye opened, followed hesitantly by the one still in the process of healing. He gave a grateful, weary grin to the newcomer, and she smiled right back.

"The second I get my diploma I'm gonna punch that smug grin right off the headmaster's face; I'm sure he's grinning like an idiot somewhere right now." Seeing the looks of horror on the faces around him—on all but one—his smirk at the white-haired girl became more pronounced. "I guess I won't have too much trouble understanding you now, huh?"

"I should hope not," she replied, and the others were unnerved to see a matching grin on her face. "It does feel strange to have a throat capable of your words, if I may say so. Nevertheless, I am grateful to be able to converse with you at long last, nestling."

He chuckled as he pulled her closer and ruffled her spiky hair. "I shouldn't be surprised; Language Arts _was_ the only class you stayed awake for. I missed you, Rei-chan."

She hugged him back even more fiercely. "I missed you as well."

The rest of the group was startled out of their revelation-induced stupor when a deep, ragged roar sounded from behind them, and just before Alexander's fangs plunged into Mizore's neck Tsukune was up and pushing her out of the way, already preparing to do the same to the oncoming man. Electricity crackled around him as he growled in rage, and Alexander was literally shocked back by the violent force of a bolt of lightning, but not before he had grabbed the shirt so near him. The collar tore open with a loud _rip_, exposing the superheated rosary to the air, but Tsukune hardly noticed the change. While the persistent vampire was doggedly returning to his feet and patting off the fire that had started on his clothes, Tsukune, on the other hand, had fallen to one knee and was panting wildly.

It would seem he was still far too weak to return to battle; he really would get himself killed otherwise. "Crap, that didn't feel very nice," the former human coughed hoarsely while grasping painfully at his chest.

"Tsukune, you're not alone anymore. I'm right here. What say you let me help _you_ now?" Moka asked lovingly, with an arm still draped over Kokoa for balance, and her mate smiled happily.

"That sounds like a great idea. This was never my fight, it was _our_ fight. I think it's time to let an old pro handle this."

She nodded and wordlessly closed her eyes, where a soft _chink_ was the last thing she heard before she felt her consciousness fade from her body.

Red youki blasted into the air in an unrestrained geyser of power while bats flew wildly in the suddenly red moon. Pink hair bled white and green eyes morphed red as the sealed vampiress was allowed back into her body, and she raised herself upright proudly. Even in her pajamas she looked as regal as ever. Her reptilian eyes froze Alexander on the spot, too afraid to move so much as a muscle in her presence. Satisfied with that, she knelt down beside Tsukune and carefully ran a hand down his dirty cheek.

"_**Rest now, my love; you've done more than I could have ever asked of you. You've done your part, now it's time for me to do mine."**_ Switching her gaze to Rei, Moka nodded ever so slightly. _**"And thank you."**_

The dragon child nodded back. "There is no need for gratitude, but you are welcome, Moka-sama."

Returning to her feet, the furious flame of her power burst around her again, and she cast one last glance to her friends. _**"I understand your desire for vengeance, but this one is mine and mine alone."**_

No one questioned her.

Stalking towards her prey like he had done so arrogantly to her earlier on, Alexander scooted back fearfully, his eyes darting between her and Tsukune, or a more specific part of Tsukune's body. She growled when she saw the fabric in his hand, and knew instantly what he was staring at.

"That's…that's…! He's a…!"

"_**Yes, it is, and yes, he is. Thank you for noticing that, I will take great pleasure in watching Kurumu erase that memory from you. I will allow you to keep this one though: I am no puppet of my father's. I belong to a new Clan now,"**_ she hissed lowly, and when she was finally in front of him the fear was plain on his face.

"Forgive me, Shuzen-sama, I didn't know!"

Her face twisted from calm indifference to unbridled rage, and she snarled at him with a fury no animal could hope to recreate. _**"You didn't care to know!"**_ He fell over himself trying to get away from her but it was a vain attempt; she had already grabbed his arm. With spectacular force she slammed him into the ground and stomped on his hand, where the sound of bones breaking became audible in the air as he cried out in pain. _**"What happened to all that confidence you had, weakling? What happened to the **_**gall**_** that made you think you could **_**touch**_** me? That made you **_**kiss**_** me? You didn't take me seriously because of my seal, and you thought you were above me because of that! I told you, I **_**warned**_** you that I would make you pay for every mark you made on my mate! Did you think I would have suddenly submitted to you if you killed Tsukune? I swear to you I would have fulfilled my promise! I would have broken my rosary by any means necessary and torn out your heart in front of your eyes!"**_ She dug her foot into his broken hand, and he tried fruitlessly to pull it from her torture as he muffled screams from between grit teeth. _**"There's only one man who has the right to touch me, and it's not you! Know your place, you worthless piece of scum!"**_

Bringing her other foot down on his forearm it too snapped like a twig under her enormous power, and another scream came from her victim. Normally she went for the head to end battles as quickly as she could, but this one was personal; this one had to be taught a lesson he wouldn't soon forget. Grabbing hold of his good arm she threw him into the nearest tree brutally, exacting her pound of flesh from him with hellish delight. She would make what he had done to Tsukune look like child's play, and with every blow her anger only grew.

By the time he lay on the ground, barely recognizable, her hands were coated with blood and she was panting above him with a fist shivering over his head. Warm fingers wrapped around her wrist gently, and she looked back to see Tsukune with tears in her eyes. He spoke no words, just tenderly pulled her to him and held her, and that was when the dam finally broke. She cried. Her bloody hands clasped to his back while she buried her head in his chest, and he simply stood there and stroked her long hair.

"I'm sorry I couldn't stop him from doing that to you," he said at last. "I'll get stronger, I promise."

"_**That's only part of it,"**_ she whispered raggedly. _**"You don't know how you looked, Tsukune; you don't. What would have happened if I couldn't get off your rosary? What might have happened if Rei hadn't shown up when she had? It was like Kuyou all over again, only this time I wouldn't have been able to do anything. He took something from me I would never willingly give, but if I had lost you I would have never forgiven myself."**_

"That's why you're not alone," Kurumu assured as she placed her hand comfortingly on her friend's back, and soon it was joined by more, each one from a friend that had been through hell together. "You said it yourself, didn't you? You're part of a new Clan now. I may not know much about vampires, but I do know that word. You have a new family. We're a bit weird, but we'll always protect each other."

Moka had never felt as warm as when she looked around her circle of friends, no, her loved ones. _**"My new family."**_

Yukari nodded solemnly up at her. "'Til death do us part."

The words were perfect.

"'_**Til death do us part."**_ Looking to Kurumu, her face turned serious once again. _**"Now, Nightwalker, I need you to do something for me…"**_

While they walked off towards the immobile body of the once fearsome foe, Yukari and Ruby each grabbed one of Tsukune's hands.

"And as for you, we need to start training your magic before you hurt yourself ~desu!"

He did a double take. "M-M-Magic?"

Behind him, Rei smiled.

…

**Author's Notes:** I'm sorry, it's really weird to get so many great reviews for one chapter then have such a dramatic drop the next. To those who reviewed the last chapter even though there was no lemon (but a whole lot of innuendo, LOL), thank you so much! It's awesome to see that I have that many people willing to continually give me amazing feedback without me requesting more reviews. Again, thank you so much.

Not as long as usual this time, but it did lessen the update time. As for Moka's father, I haven't watched the anime, but I have done my research. Besides, normally anime's don't stray _too_ too far from their manga. If it does, oh well, but if there was one good thing the anime was useful for it was that, if not just for research notes and plot ideas.

There's much more to come, so tell me what you think!

I hope you enjoyed the chapter!

...

**Outtake Theatre**

The situation was ripe for a new conflict, and it came, just not in the form anyone had expected.

A giant metal fist crushed the hostile vampire without warning, and from the spine of the enormous bio-mech that had appeared out of nowhere a white tube retracted. A girl with blue hair and red eyes exited the plug, and everyone was stunned into silence. The woman looked around in confusion, before looking at the stain under her Eva's hand.

"Apologies, I appear to be in the wrong genre. Have a good day."

Rei Ayanami left after peeling what was left of Alexander from her knuckles.

...

...I know, that was terrible. I just had to do it, LOL!

.


	14. To Heal A Vampire

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Rosario+Vampire, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story. Simple enough, ne? Just don't copy from this story and we're all good!

**Warning! The following chapter contains excessive amounts of angst, fluff, and cheese with a lemony twist that might not be suitable for all viewers. Viewer discretion is advised. (LOL, I've always wanted to say that. Enjoy the chapter!)**

…

**To Heal A Vampire**

…

Contrary to the relative sense of normalcy that had settled over the group after the ordeal was known to be done with, the silence of solemnity returned when the hospital staff arrived. No questions were asked, mercifully, but there had been no denying the look of understanding on the face of one of the orderlies. Maybe it was because it had been a woman, but after seeing the destruction caused, the wounds still healing on the male of the group, and the nightwear worn by the visibly agitated vampiress as she glared at their patient from in the protective hold of said male, the look she set upon Moka had not been accusatory or unforgiving. Instead, only sympathy was in her eyes, perhaps even a congratulatory gleam. With Ruby's orders to keep the patient under watch at all times, the practically vegetative vampire was carted off to the hospital for some much needed recuperation.

It was similar to having all of the emotions in the air vanish, the only trace of their absence the numbness of defeat even in what had been a victory. It had come at a cost, and they all knew it. For most it returned the mortality to one whom they had mistakenly thought to have become unstoppable, but for another, the security of one of the cornerstones of her life had been challenged irreparably. It had been his place in her life that she had struggled against for so long, unwilling to admit the rock he had become in her world fraught with danger and strife. Having long accepted his love as something she _needed_, to be so powerless in something that threatened his existence caused her heart to ache. Had she been unsealed such an impact as that which had knocked her outer self unconscious wouldn't have even given her a bump on the head. Had she been unsealed, such a pitiful excuse for a vampire wouldn't have gotten close to injuring her in _any_ way! And now, it wasn't just her that was being endangered by a seal beyond their control.

She was proud of him, so, so amazingly proud of him for fighting so fiercely in a form so weak compared to his true self. She was also so, so amazingly annoyed at him for doing so. He had always understood the danger her rosary placed her in when contrasted with her unsealed abilities, yet he still fought tooth and nail to protect her in a body much more easily killed. It wasn't his fault, she knew that, but just looking at him when she had regained consciousness had pained her more than he could possibly know. If the repercussions weren't so high, she would have killed Alexander for what he had done to her mate. If Tsukune had died, his life would have been forfeit, no matter what she would have had to do to make it so. Just like hers.

Her clan, her new family, they were the only ones who could understand that. Even the ever-merciful Kurumu had looked upon the source of Tsukune's pain with a gaze devoid of compassion, and though she had yet to come into full awareness of her new powers, the charm she had woven into his mind forever erased what she had been told to take from him. It hadn't been painless either; she had made sure of that. They had bought time and that was it, sooner or later the vampire would recover and report to his betters. It wasn't like any of them had the authority to keep him back. They had to be ready for when that happened, and they knew it would.

The quiet was suffocating in the normally exuberant group, but no one knew what words could be said to offer any support other than what had already been made known. Moka had retreated into an almost desperate embrace with her mate while the others looked amongst themselves worriedly, only concern for the vampiress on their minds. Tsukune shared significant looks with them before carefully trying to move away, and to their surprise the silver-haired woman whimpered quietly and instantly pulled him back to her. Burying her head into his broad chest, white-knuckled fingers clutched at the back of his shirt and stained it a messy red as the front was made wet from a completely different source.

Tsukune's eyes softened, both love and regret rich in his features as he laid a chaste kiss on the top of his goddess' head. Looking down to where Rei had stayed, silently conveying what help she could to them, she caught his gaze immediately. "Rei-chan, can I ask you for a favor?"

Traces of a grin tugged at her lips as she shook her head in amusement. "While I appreciate the thought, there is no need to be so hesitant around me. Ours is a mutual relationship; you have had nothing but my best interests in mind since the moment of my hatching; I would be happy to carry out whatever boon you wish of me."

He smiled warmly at her and her steely eyes danced with joy under his unspoken thanks. "Would you mind watching over the girls' dorm tonight? You know, just to be safe?"

Fond pride stemmed from her renewed smile as she looked around her partner's family, new respect visible in her stature. "'Twould be my honor to protect our treasures, nestling. No harm shall befall them under my watch, that I swear upon my honor."

Breaking away from Moka's grip for a moment, he knelt down and hugged his Familiar softly. "Thank you, Rei-chan. This means a lot to me."

"I make such a claim because I know that to be true," she replied earnestly as she returned his affection. There was no higher honor than being asked to guard what he held closest to his heart, and for Tsukune, that had always been his friends and family. His treasures had never been in the form of jewels or riches, it was those people he held dear. She knew he would never ask her to do trivial tasks, but to know that he trusted her with the treasures he would protect with his life filled her with delight. _I knew I chose you for a reason._

When they parted he took Moka's hand in his, and she gratefully wound their fingers together as she looked up at her room. With the door so heinously ripped from it, it stood out in a mockery to the safety the four walls a student would call home normally presented. Tonight, there was only one place she wanted to be, and it wasn't there. As Tsukune bid farewell to their family, she caught the eyes of Kurumu and Mizore as they walked away. There was no jealousy or condemnation in them, only love and empathy. As she met the gaze of each of her friends in turn it was the same. Even Kokoa offered her a weak smile before she headed to her room. They knew what she needed, and they weren't going to stand in the way of that. It was amazing. In one of the most diverse groups she had ever seen she had found a clan more close-knit than even one bonded by true blood relation.

Kurumu was the heart of their family, the piece that didn't need rationale to love and forgive. Mizore was their personality, the quirks and inherent desire to be loved that every person held. Yukari was the mind, the always-analytic intelligence that fueled justification and gave motive to actions. Ruby embodied their wisdom, that gained only by time and experience to advise the movements of the rest of the body, the thoughts the brain devised, and the feelings of the heart—while not without quirks of its own. She and her outer self were their physical being, their hands and feet, that which carried out what needed to be done, protected what was underneath, and held the pieces together. Kokoa's place was uncertain, because that was just what she was—she was the uncertainty in every person that was fearsome to behold when focused. And Tsukune, Tsukune was their soul. With him, they were whole. Without him, they were empty. Without their soul, they might as well be dead.

Her thoughts must have shown on her face, for she was brought out of her contemplation by a thumb rubbing comfortingly over the top of her hand. A glance to the side showed Tsukune's caring gaze on her and she knew without looking it was him who was calming her. Even with skin dirtied by battle and clothes in disrepair, his smile could still make her world feel right. At one point she would have been angered by her dependence on someone else, now all she felt was safe. She, the vampiress who had once scoffed at the idea of relying on another, now knew the beauty of unconditional love and devotion unrestrained by perceptions or preconceived notions. He lent his strength to her without expecting anything in return, and she had never needed it more.

At last, he broke the silence that had surrounded them. "I know this is against school rules, but we've broken it plenty of times already. Would you like to spend the night in my room?"

She only nodded. _**"…I should get a uniform from my room for tomorrow. I'd…rather not go back before it's fixed."**_

"Would you like this back then?" he asked as he held up her cross, and if it was possible she went even paler than she was usually.

"_**No!"**_ Seeing the shock on his face at her outburst, she forced herself to calm. _**"I would prefer to stay out for tonight. I just…want to be with you…as myself."**_

"I understand," he whispered, tenderly running his free hand down her cheek. The look she saw in his eyes made her feel like he could see right through her, and a part of her knew that he could, just like she, and the rest of their clan, could see into him. "I understand what it's like to be afraid. I understand what it's like to think we might never see each other again. If there's _one_ thing I understand, it's feeling powerless…useless…while you're in danger. I know that one way, way too well. I also understand what comes after, I've done it enough. Don't beat yourself up, Moka; please, _please_ don't do that. It's not your fault, if anything, it's _my_ fault. I told you I'll get stronger, and I will, I promise I will. I'll become strong enough to protect our whole family, just like you."

Her eyes squinted shut as she found tears forcing their way out again, and she pressed her face into his shirt to hide as restrained sobs shook her body. She knew he understood, that was what made it so painful. _**"You've always been stronger than me, Tsukune. Always. I might be able to break concrete and jump buildings, but your heart can single-handedly bring someone out of the depths of despair. Your kindness can make someone who's lived their whole life for revenge see hope. Your love found someone so lost in her own arrogance she couldn't spare tears for anything, and now she cries because the thought of losing that love scares her more than even that! I can't stand this feeling of…of uselessness! You could have died, Tsukune, you could have died! I'm not a little girl, I'm powerful! I'm a proud, powerful Super Vampire! What good is that if I can't protect the ones I love!"**_

He held her against him, soothingly running his hands down her back as she fought the grief wracking her body with clenched teeth. "You're forgetting one very important thing," he began gently as he cupped her chin up to look at him, "…sometimes, you have to let the ones you love protect _you_. Believe me, I know that one too. Kurumu said it before: we're here for each other for a reason. We all feel the same way you do, Moka. So what if things don't always go the way we want them to? That's why we have people to back us up. I wouldn't have survived the first month, no, not even that; I wouldn't have survived the first _week_ here without you, literally. You've been my strength for the longest time; I'm willing to endure any pain to be yours."

A bittersweet chuckle escaped her. In so many words he had managed to drive off the fear inside her, replacing it with serene warmth that let her weary mind relax. Wiping at her eyes and nose, she smiled. _**"You always did know just what to say to get to me."**_

With a smile back he carefully brushed away the strands of glittering silver from her face, lovingly meeting the swollen red eyes of his lover with his own honey-brown irises. "No, I never have. I'm not smart enough to do that. The only things I've ever told you are the truth."

Though her hands were still stained crimson she reached up, quietly charming his face down to her, where eyes closed in peace as lips met. It was because of that that he missed the final, single tear that fell from between her shut eyelids. There was no force, no hunger, only the romance of rose petals flittering amid a summer breeze, kissing the surroundings with silken caresses so light their existence would be questioned if not for the scent left behind. It was love in its basest, purest form, and when they parted, happiness had finally returned to her scarlet eyes.

Twining their fingers together, she led them away.

…

Blood and dirt mingled and dispersed in the treated water of the bath as the two vampires sat, ever so slowly running their hands over each other's body. These weren't arousing touches, rather, reassuring ones. With each swipe that cleansed more flesh soiled by battle and disgrace, they reconnected in a way even carnal intimacy couldn't compare to. There was wonder in each stroke, a sense of rediscovery that made the troubles of earlier disappear to the wind. There was no need to worry about being separated because it simply wasn't possible.

When they had arrived at his room she had started the bath without a word, leaving Tsukune alone with his thoughts. When she had beckoned to him from his bathroom door with not a shred of clothing on her, no thoughts had been left to be alone with. He had moved to her as if entranced, took her into his arms with the same tenderness she attributed to him. What was left of his apparel she had removed piece by piece in dexterous motions that left him naked to her appraisal, where she then led him to the spa.

Silver hair splayed into a mercury sea as her pale body disappeared into the waiting wash, where rivulets of ruby marked her entrance, and when he followed, tangled veins of sediment coursed off to join them. Her first touch had wandered down his dirty neck, to feel the strong pulse thrum under her fingertips before she started to truly wash him. His had been to the cheek he had seen scuffed from a hit before his arrival, and her free hand had risen to join it, pressing it against her skin adoringly. She ran that hand down, over her full lips to kiss the calloused appendages on their way down, down to where she held it over her heart.

They kissed, met halfway in the desire and surrendered themselves to it. Each inch of their bodies washed became the next target of affection, wiping away both the physical and emotional reminders. Moka took great delight in straddling him as she scrubbed his hair, stretching herself taut over him as he lay beneath her and invented new designs to rub along her abdomen, flowing without reason over her hips and to her perfect backside. His lips had claimed her own as he held her firm against him, his hand secure in the small of her back while he reversed their positions. Her heavy breaths turned to breathy moans as his talented fingers traversed her scalp, which nearly turned to whimpers when he turned his mouth to her neck. Teasing her with pressure enough just to feel his fangs, pull at her skin without breaking it, mark it as his own, she let her body do the pleading, pulling him to her, letting him feel her heat against his.

Playful laughter and hot gasps were all they made as they exited the water with her suspended in the air, allowing her to wind her legs around his waist before he tumbled into the wall, forcefully clashing them together as her back was meshed to the tile. Lust and love were presences among them, not merely something they felt. They were something they _needed_. Fumbling movements hindered by unabashed gropes and kisses finally found them to his bed, where with great care they reunited in every way.

Though the beauty of feeling him within her after so long made her want to cry, she didn't. She had cried enough, tears were unsuited here. Eyes so different from hers shone in the meager light of the room as they joined in deliberate slowness, reveling in every new sensation they could create in each other. Behind their hazel disguise she knew the fiercest of red was gazing back at her, knew the dark skin of the one she had come to love was nothing but a front for the alabaster irregularity it covered from the rest of the world. As she took him into herself, silently whispering praises to the heavens, she knew she was just like him. He may not have a separate personality that represented his outer form, but she loved the man he once was just as much as the vampire he had become.

Her friend, her protector, her unintended creation perfected…her eternal blood-mate. Her Tsukune.

Nerves rose to life as bodies met and hearts merged into dazzling displays of pleasure that necessitated vocal response, smothered indefinitely beneath preoccupied mouths as tongues and fangs clashed. There was no place restricted from their grasp, no inhibition to encumber the path of passion the two walked. Tsukune gave his all and she responded with nothing less, their slow love hastening towards a peak they both knew was rapidly approaching. Her name spilled from his lips like a prayer, urging her to fall with him, and she did so gladly. The culmination of their loving labors took their breaths away, left them trembling in beautiful harmony as they basked in the glow.

Moka threaded her fingers through his dark chocolate hair as she smiled at him, calm and sated for the first time in what seemed like forever. _**"Thank you,"**_ she murmured softly, and he grinned as he moved himself up to lay beside her and pulled her to his chest.

"For what?"

"_**For being you."**_

Nestling into his warmth, she curled a leg over his, pressing them as close together as she could while he pulled the covers over them. Despite everything that had happened over the day, Moka Akashiya was able to go to sleep with a smile on her face.

…

Two others slept peacefully, huddled together for comfort in the face of the events they had witnessed. Yukari and Ruby laid in the eldest's room, relieved in the presence the other offered. Sleep came easily, but only thanks to that.

…

Mizore and Kurumu had also taken to the idea. After being reminded of how quickly even a seemingly immortal vampire's life could be threatened—_their_ vampire's life could be threatened—they knew the only way they would get the smallest amount of rest was if they weren't alone. Embracing even in unconsciousness, it granted solace.

…

For another, she had returned to a habit she had thought long broken. Kokoa slept with her beloved Familiar Kou curled in her arms, something she hadn't done since she was a child. The familiarity was welcome, a desperate attempt to keep her mind free from the worries of what the encounter meant for her and her sister. Fortunately, it worked.

…

Sitting in one of the trees just outside the dorm, only one of them refused to give in to the sandman's call. Her piercing steel eyes cut through the darkness without the smallest difficulty, watching for any sign of would-be dangers. It wasn't needed, for the realm itself was reacting to her attendance, the natural energies inherent all around her bringing dead trees to spring new buds. Primordial magic was thick in the air, ancient enchantment that couldn't be called upon consciously bent to the dragon's will. In it she had added her partner's treasures to her own, protecting their very dreams from unkind influences.

That night they would slumber devoid of fear, of that she had made certain.

.

V^^^V

.

Nearly the entire school was in some state of awe the next day, for though Summer Break was barely a week of exams away the season was never visibly seen in the climate of Youkai Academy. It made sense then that there was a good deal of surprise when the women of the school woke up to see all the trees surrounding their dorm in an explosion of fresh greenery. Healthy grass was sprouting from the formerly barren ground and if that wasn't enough, vines bearing the beginnings of flowers were crawling up the sides of the building itself. No one had ever questioned the lack of foliage before and most had even gotten used to the dreary appearance—if they didn't instantly fall in love with the 'character' that is—therefore to see so much appear out of nowhere was a shock.

The siren call of rebirth was what two residents of that dorm awakened to, and it took a while for them to understand what they were hearing. The hum had always been weaker inside the Grand Barrier; there, but muted. It hadn't been destroyed by construction, but it couldn't really be called 'alive' either. With the reappearance of a monster tied more intricately into nature than even witches, one coming into powers of her own, things had started to change. The only witches present in the academy ran out of the bedroom as soon as they had pulled on their clothes, wonder plain on their faces as they looked out from the top floor to the instantaneous springtide that had taken place.

"Who… what…when…_h-how?_" Yukari mumbled in disbelief, her trademark line conspicuously absent in her astonishment.

Ruby could only wet her dry mouth, just as confused as her younger friend. "I…honestly have no idea. I thought the Grand Barrier prevented seasons from affecting the school…" Noticing the amount of students walking away from the dorm, gawking, but walking away nonetheless, something else came to mind. "Wait a minute, what time is it?"

Looking to the alarm, the smaller girl paled. "We slept in ~desu! I _hate_ going to school without breakfast!"

The elder among them quickly grabbed some fruit from her fridge and passed a couple to her counterpart as she slung her wand over her back. It would be a terrible sign for the rest of the week to be late, especially for the students of their group. They still had exams to worry about. "That'll have to do, let's go!"

Practically flying down the stairs to the road, the twosome was stopped short when they saw pink hair in their path. Indeed, the outer form of Moka Akashiya was standing next to one of the budding trees with one of her usual, gentle smiles on her face. While that wouldn't be surprising under normal circumstances, considering what had happened the day before they had expected her to be a little more subdued. If anything, she looked happier than before. Of course, this was moot to one who's thought processes changed on a dime when said woman was involved.

"Moka-san! Good morning ~desu!" the young magician squealed excitedly as she threw her arms around the vampiress' waist, fruit in hand or not.

"Good morning to you too, Yukari-chan. Sleep well?"

The question actually caused her to pause. "Now that you mention it, yeah; really, really well!"

"Troubles are always easier with friends to help you through them," Ruby said with a smile as she placed a hand on the other witch's shoulder. "I know I slept easier."

She received a grateful smile back for that, but Yukari's curiosity was dying to be appeased. "Never mind that, who cares about sleep! What happened here!"

Moka grinned as she motioned her eyes upwards, and the two looked up in bewilderment to see Tsukune sitting on one of the branches of the tree above them, cradling a small girl wearing his blazer against his chest. "She watched over you, just like she said she would, that's what happened," he answered simply. "Can't you feel it? This is her magic here. Well, I think it's more like…the source of magic…or something different than just…spells…responding to her, or something. Does that make any sense? It just feels like _her_, you know?"

Two dumbstruck stares were his replies, and had he not been holding his partner the desire to scratch his neck nervously wouldn't have been fought against very strongly. Stars eventually replaced that empty gaze in Yukari's eyes, and Tsukune was glad he was up in the tree. It looked like she would have tackled him in glee if he had been on the ground. She was all but jumping up and down as she grabbed Ruby's hands and brought her along for the ride. "Do you know what this means ~desu!"

With a quick look back at the blissfully oblivious vampire, Ruby smirked. "It means Tsukune really is ready to be trained."

Taking a page from a certain succubus' book, the young witch yelled, "Yahoo!"

Coincidentally, it was the sneeze that woke up aforementioned succubus in time for school.

Meanwhile, the male of their group just arched an eyebrow in confusion. He knew he was missing out on some part of their inner conversation, but he couldn't be bothered to care. Clearing his throat to get their attention again, he straightened Rei in his grip. "She must be exhausted, she fell asleep the moment I came to see her. I think I really did ask too much of her this time, but then again I didn't mean for her to stay awake the whole night. Anyways, I'm going to go take her back to my room so she can rest, so just tell Nekonome-sensei I might be a bit late, please?"

They all nodded understandingly, but that was halted abruptly when Tsukune pushed himself off his branch. The first thought that came to mind was that he supposedly hadn't wanted to wake his Familiar, but that was killed in a quick and painful manner when ice rose up to catch the vampire on a stairway of frozen water before he had even dropped an inch. With his usual pace he walked down like nothing was off with the situation at all, and with each step the ice melted behind him. When he was safely on the ground there was no trace of what had been there but the fresh moisture absorbed into the budding grass, away from the vampires weak to it.

Open-mouthed stares had resumed and this time Moka was among their number. They all knew he had been training for a good month with their resident ice mistress, but he had never displayed those powers so openly before, not to mention without having fed first. He took the gurgled sounds that might have once been questions as what they were meant to be, eyes cast with a hard edge of their own as he looked down at his hands, though why they had no idea.

"Mizore and Kurumu have some explaining to do," was all he said before he walked away.

Ruby resisted the urge to pull at her choker.

…

There was a time and a place for everything, and though he had said those things earlier in the day, Tsukune Aono wasn't one that backed out on his promises. As much to himself as it was to another, his resolve had never been firmer that this was one promise he _had_ to fulfill. In order to do that however, he knew drastic measures were called for. It felt like he was walking into an ambush, but that pretty much described his whole life at Youkai Academy. It just so happened that his goals finally matched up with those of the ambusher.

Opening the door to the headmaster's office, he was a bit surprised to see Ruby gone from her desk in the waiting area. Considering all she had to do in a day her absence wasn't really that unforeseen; he had been counting on it as a matter of fact. He was sure she had heard about it already—maybe not, knowing the headmaster—but this was something he had to do without any interference. Their beloved club advisor had yet to spring some unknown trip on them at the last minute and even if she did, for once Tsukune wouldn't be with them. Though he had never thought he would ever be able to say such a thing, he had more important things to do.

"**Well, this is an unexpected surprise. What brings you to my office, Tsukune-kun? Most don't dare come here voluntarily."**

Though his heart jumped at the voice from behind him, the young vampire kept himself from reacting. This time he was on a mission; he wouldn't allow himself to show weakness. "I'm sure you know by now. I'm not in the mood for games today."

"**Ah, pity. Very well, I'll play along. I would assume this is about the visitor you had yesterday?"**

Biting back a scathing comment just begging to be followed by physical violence, Tsukune fixed his most unbendable glare on the most powerful man in the hidden realm. "As much as I want to say yes, that's only a part of it. I know you're itching to call in more favors, so I thought I'd beat you to the punch. I'll go, just like you wanted, but how about we make it a month instead of a week?"

Over the indiscernible orbs of his eyes, the Exorcist's eyebrows rose. **"This is certainly a day for surprises indeed. It does feel like the new arrangement is more to your desire than mine, why should I accept?"**

"Because if you don't want me to start asking any more questions about this damn rosary, you're going to let me learn how to fight with it on. You're the one that wanted me to get in touch with my new instincts, so let me."

A slow, delightedly dark smile spread on what was visible of headmaster's face. **"My my, so the young boy I once knew really did decide to grow a spine, did he? All right, your argument has been made; I'll allow it. You realize your little friends won't be too impressed with this development, don't you?"**

Tsukune frowned, but only slightly. "…I know. I know, but I can't say I really love them if I don't do everything I possibly can to protect them. Honestly, I don't know what the hell is up with this rosary you gave me, and right now, I don't care. Last time we talked I couldn't understand your reasoning, now I know you were right. I'm a vampire; I drink blood, I'm weak to water, I can do just about anything if I really want to, but I don't know the first thing about what that means. If what you want me to do will help me understand that, I should take all the time I can get. It'll give Rei-chan and I a chance to know each other better too. I've been with everyone else for years already, now I've got a Familiar and I barely know her. It may take up a lot of my Summer Vacation but I don't care."

"**You've really thought this through. I'm impressed."**

"Don't be," the former human responded bitterly. "If I was impressive in any way, I would have been able to keep Moka from crying. I _need_ to get stronger; I _need_ to be able to protect them. I remember what one day did for me in Second Year, I'm hoping one month will give me more."

"**You remember the terms I laid out, correct? Of course, you can bring your homework if you really want to. I'm sure Rei-chan has found a cave worthy of her by now. Other than that: no trivialities, no outside contact, and no bringing in food. I'll allow you to bring your toothbrush, but only that and the clothes on your back," **the Exorcist stated factually, and the other man only nodded.

"To survive on nothing but what I can, I know. Don't worry, I won't let Rei-chan do all the hunting either. I do have one question, and before you say anything about what I said before, I think it has a pretty big impact on this so I'm asking it anyway." Cut off, the headmaster copied Tsukune's earlier action and nodded. "I thought you said the rosary would come off in a life or death situation, so why didn't it yesterday?"

Now one of the priestly man's eyebrows truly was arched in curiosity, and when he stepped forward to examine the item in question his face returned to its usual look of infuriatingly knowing smugness. Which meant, as per usual, that he wasn't about to tell him a damn thing.

"**I believe my exact words were 'if circumstances deem it fit'. Obviously the circumstances weren't right for the rosary."**

Tsukune glowered. "I hate you, you know that?" With a sigh, he shook his head in resignation. "Just be sure you watch them like you promised. If something happens I'd better know about it, otherwise I don't care how many favors I owe you, you just wasted them all."

The Exorcist only laughed. **"That's the spirit! Go on now, I look forward to your return, and dear Rei-chan's."**

Taking the cue, the student left, leaving the older man alone in his office. They weren't as alone as he would have thought, for the robed man turned to the shelf and a tiny fairy flew out to land on his shoulder. **"So what do you think, Lilith? Is his desire honest?"**

The nightgown-wearing pixie shivered despite her usual haughty demeanor. "Without a doubt. I've never seen someone with so much kindness and love in them, but because of that he has even more anger and disappointment in himself when he fails. His intentions are pure, despite everything. His only thoughts are of them even now. If it wasn't so disgustingly mushy I'd be impressed."

"**What about his strength, his resolve?"**

Another shiver came, but this one was just as much out of desire as it was of terror. "It's growing, slowly but surely. He weakens himself every time he gives his blood away, and there's no doubt about the succubus' siphoning, but every time he returns to full strength his limit has grown. I would love to see his true face reflected in my mirror…. When he reaches that peak, it'll be amazing…"

He grinned. **"That's what I'm counting on."**

…

The atmosphere of the room they were in was awkward, in an oppressive, hand-in-the-cookie-jar kind of way. Everyone in the room had something they had kept from the others, and judging from Ruby's look, it wasn't going to be allowed any longer. It begged the question of the absence of the soon-to-be topic, the only one of their group currently missing, but that could be wondered after things had been straightened out between them. Being the one that had gathered them, the eldest witch was the first to start.

"Okay, I know you're probably all wondering why I asked you here—"

"Without Tsukune," Kurumu interrupted, and Ruby sighed.

"Yes, without Tsukune. It's because—"

"You found out that you haven't been the only one hiding things from him?" Mizore supplied, and at that the other woman paled before sighing again, this time in defeat.

"I think we all knew, but for some reason we didn't talk to each other about it. With Tsukune's magic manifesting again and new training added to this whole pile of secrets, I thought we should talk."

"Yes, let us talk," a smoky, cultured voice replied, nearly causing everyone in the room to jump as the window was opened and a small girl climbed in. Her hair was as spiky as it had been when they had first met and her eyes just as striking, but now she was wearing a white t-shirt that looked more like a robe on her. Crossing her arms over her chest, the human dragon waited. "I am unsure of what action I should take against the robed man that endangered my partner, so please, enlighten me as to this situation."

For such a small child, her veiled threats were top-notch.

"Now Rei-chan, the headmaster didn't _endanger_ Tsukune so much as he…"

"He _what?_" the Familiar demanded. "'Twas _he_ who sealed him, was it not? 'Twas _he_ who suggested my return to Paradise, was it not? I mean you no disrespect, but had I been here my partner would not have suffered so humiliating a defeat!" Many eyes turned to the ground then, and the dragon softened her tone. "I apologize, that was uncalled for. I realize not all of you have a bond the likes of which we share. I let my frustration at my delayed arrival get the better of me."

"No, that's alright, Rei-chan. We deserve it," Kurumu whispered sadly. "Tsukune awakened something in me I still can't believe; I didn't even know I was taking his power. I should have been able to feel _something_."

"It's not your fault, Kurumu," Moka assured firmly. "You still showed up when we needed you, same with you, Rei-chan. Things could have gone differently, sure, but it happened the way it did for a reason and Tsukune knows that."

Ruby shuffled uneasily. _That's what I'm worried about._

The bluette smiled reluctantly before turning back to Rei. "So we know what kept us, but what took you so long? Does it have something to do with the new look?"

"It does," the dragon responded. "'Twould appear the portal to this realm from Paradise is guarded against the departure of its bestial occupants. I was forced to assume the form of this new 'look' as you put it, to return to his side."

Kokoa looked offended. "Then why would he put you in that place to begin with! You're his Familiar! Kou-chan can be a pain in the ass sometimes but I would never…!" She couldn't even finish her sentence she was so insulted, and Rei smiled at the young vampiress.

"Your offense is touching, thank you. I would assume he did not know of the conditions for my release. The more likely explanation is the robed riddle-maker. I would suspect 'twas anticipated my gilded incarceration would only be discovered upon a threat to my partner's wellbeing, thus necessitating this transformation. Had I not made it in time I would be picking those robes out of my teeth, and only because that is not the case am I grateful for this form. Now that I am free to roam the realms without restriction, I shall respond faster should there be a next time."

"Why that conniving little…wait a minute!" the redhead shrieked, pointing accusingly at Ruby, "you _knew!_"

The dark-skinned child quickly held out her hands calmingly. "I am well aware of that, fiery one. 'Twould be illogical for the apprentice to be completely unaware of the machinations of the master. No punishment I could deliver would exceed her own suffering had he perished however, and while she did withhold the information from me, I do not bear a grudge. While the end hardly justifies the means 'twas indeed the fastest way for me to gain this form, her choice in the matter notwithstanding. She is but a pupil beneath a master; I would not expect her to go against his wishes."

"Thank you, Rei-chan," the sorceress said earnestly, and the girl nodded back her acceptance.

"Am I the only one totally creeped out by a ten-year-old talking like that?" Kurumu interjected with her hand raised like she was in class.

Rei glared at her. "This appearance is only temporary, I assure you. By my estimation, by the end of my second month this human form should have aged three of your standard human years, and by six I would expect to look sixteen. When I reach full maturation and my metabolism settles down, my age should suspend around your twenty-year mark."

"So fast!" they all cried.

"My current appetite is for a reason, my treasures; 'tis in my blood to grow as large and fierce as I can within my first year. As for my speech, I am unsure. Perhaps I took too great a liking to the writings read to me atop the nestling's square cave. I believe he described it as 'homework', but he expressed a most sincere desire to converse mutually with me, so 'tis not inconceivable I simply adapted it to my taste."

Yukari slapped a hand to her face. "Great, so thanks to Language Arts we now have a dragon that talks like a playwright!"

"Worse things could have happened," Kurumu rationalized with a shrug.

"Yeah, she could have spent too much time around _you_," Mizore teased monotonously, a small grin tugging at her lips, and her duet partner mocked offense as she grasped at her heart.

"Oh that hurts, it really does. You sure weren't complaining when you were trapped between me and Ts—"

She was promptly frozen into a block of ice, her florescent Snow Woman companion trying hard not to melt it with the heat from her face beside her.

Moka almost turned purple while fighting to keep herself from laughing, Rei just looked confused, and everyone else's jaws were on the floor as the ice maiden suddenly found her twiddling thumbs _very_ interesting. "U-Um…you were saying, Rei-chan?"

Giving one last look to the women battling their responses back under their control—and the newly freed succubus—she shook her head to rid her of the interest. "To be fair, I was finished. Since you asked, I shall take it to ask a question of Moka-sama." Turning to her, she did just that. "I realize the topic must be difficult to approach, but 'tis to my understanding the goal of the vampire you vanquished was, in fact, you. If you would elaborate, I would be most appreciative."

Kokoa sucked in a sharp breath, but Moka merely gave a melancholic smile. "No, you have every right to ask me that. I was hoping to tell Tsukune first but I might as well tell you all, now that it's been brought up. To put it simply: I'm the black sheep of the family, born from the one who got away. My mother left and I went to find her, which is why I spent all middle school in the human world. Yesterday it was made painfully clear my father only let me go as a delusion of childhood, hoping I would be crushed beneath the hopelessness. I refused to submit to my father, and when I left I took my mother's name. I put as much distance between the great, all-powerful Dark Lord _Shuzen_ and myself as I could. My other half-siblings bear _his_ name, but I refuse to. My name is Moka _Akashiya_, simple as that."

Kurumu looked like she was going to faint. "You're telling us your dad is a _Dark Lord?_ Well, at least that explains you and your sisters' freakish power."

"You don't need to patronize me," the younger vampiress seethed. "I'm nowhere near Onee-sama's level, and I probably never will be."

"Ah, but how blind you are, nestling," Rei spoke kindly, more like a mother than a child barely a month old. Her bare feet made no sound on the floor as she strode forward and sharply plucked a strand of hair from the redhead's pigtailed mane, earning a pained cry as the woman clutched her head.

"Ow! What the hell was that for you tiny—" For one second she questioned her advice on heart attacks, because she was sure her heart had just stopped. "Oh…oh god. You're…you're lying, this can't be real…"

Clutched amid the dragon's small fingertips was one solitary tress of glittering silver. Not orange, not grey, but a brilliant silvery white.

"I can sense him in you, his strength, still there, forcing out your dormant power. A vampire's strength comes from their blood; the longer they live, the more they come into it. Yours merely needed a push. You will gain your heritage, just give it time."

She couldn't take it, she broke down crying. She had never felt relief like what she was feeling in her life. In that one second the biggest burden she carried with her had been removed, and every lingering feeling had broken loose at once. Moka had slipped to her side, embracing her half-sister in a reassuring hold that the younger woman clasped to like a lifeline, tears of joy and liberation thick on her face. Finally, she was seeing progress. Finally, she could be free of the self-loathing that plagued her, the sneers of her father's guests. Finally, she could feel like who she knew she was inside.

"You drank Tsukune's blood, didn't you?" the pinkette asked gently.

She could only nod. "I…I almost killed him. The taste was so addictive, I just couldn't stop! He managed to make me, and…and…he…really is being tested…isn't he?"

Those words sucked the air out of the room like the cold of deep space. Yukari went white as a sheet, which also described Mizore and Kurumu quite well. Ruby was pale for a whole different reason, and plain confusion was on Rei's face. To the elder witch's astonishment, the sealed vampiress only nodded.

"We were right from the very beginning."

"How could I have missed it ~desu! I can't believe I thought it was _pretty_ ~desu!" Yukari all but screeched in a shrill falsetto before rambling off into random mumbles under her breath, most synonymous with 'stupid', 'blind', and 'idiot'.

"That's…that's not all, actually," Mizore began shakily. "He's…remembering our powers. He has been from the start. If he doesn't use the supernatural power in our blood when he drinks it, it's like he…absorbs it. It was hardly a day after we started training that we figured it out, so we…decided to go with it. Kurumu's been training with him on the days he drinks my blood, and I've been training with him on the days he drinks hers. We've been adding to his supply for the past _month_."

Ruby dragged her hand down her face in exasperation. "That would explain why he couldn't remove the rosary! I thought it would take longer for the links to fuse, but then again knowing him they could have fused right when it was put on. When he talked about it being warm I should have checked, and yesterday…yesterday it almost…"

"I do not wish to seem rude, but would someone be so kind as to explain to me what is going on?" the white-haired Familiar asked, with what was clearly limited patience.

"What's stopping any monster from claiming they're the strongest? Only those close to the Three would never dare compare themselves to them and risk being proven painfully wrong—well, unless assassination is the goal in the first place to gain the position. There are a few ways to gain a place in the hierarchy other than those two, but if one wants to be proven in a way no one can deny…"

"They're given the Test of Judgment, made by another Dark Lord," Moka finished. "A seal with seventy-seven links, each link a seal representing a degree, and at the center in the largest seal is something sealed itself: an Artifact. Unlike normal seals that aren't made to break and only do if the strain is too high and _only_ then, the Test is one made to release excess, making it something only one with a huge amount of Youki can hope to crack. In order for it to break it can't be able to release enough of the strain, and the output has to stay high enough to crack each seal. Most go on accomplishments, but for vampires, who are considered among the weakest against seals, it's a perfect test."

"Sounds like something you could've taken," the succubus murmured, and paled further at Moka's sheepish look. "…You've been offered it before, haven't you?"

"My father thought I could have been a Mistress when I was young. I didn't want to bring any extra attention to myself, so I didn't. When I saw what Tsukune was wearing that day he showed us, part of me was overjoyed, and part of me wondered if I shouldn't try. I would need to get rid of this seal though, and being repaired as many times as it has, we don't know if…I…would be able to remain. Time isn't a factor any more, just who releases it. Basically, it's not worth the risk."

"True enough," Mizore agreed. "If Tsukune…if _we_ lost you…I don't even want to think about it."

Rei drummed her fingers on her arm thoughtfully. "So once the links on this rosary are fused, he has been accepted as a candidate?"

"That pretty much sums it up, yeah," Ruby replied.

"And what happens if he breaks all of them and reaches that final seal?"

There was silence, but slowly, smiles started forming on the faces around her.

"Then…for the first time we'll have a legitimate Fourth."

…

It was a mistake to believe that the emotionally draining experience of their meeting could be repeated so soon afterwards. The day passed with Tsukune knowing nothing of their conversation and them knowing nothing of his, a bad combination by any account. The thought of him being tested changed nothing in their minds, for they knew they couldn't do anything about it now that it had been put in place. They were all powerful in their own right; having proof beyond challenge was something they were all looking forward to.

Procrastination proved to be their undoing evil. They all thought there would be time, so it came to be that Tsukune wasn't told of the reason for Moka's intruder until after the last day of exams had been completed. She waited patiently for his response, not knowing what to expect, and when it came her spine chilled. He didn't pale, he didn't seem shocked, the only thing that happened was his jaw tightened, defined itself from under his skin while his brow furrowed determinedly. She could almost see the fear in his eyes, knew it was because he understood what they would have to eventually face. When he gazed into her own she saw something different, a resolve in the form of their faces reflecting in his pupils. It was then she knew they hadn't been the only ones hiding something.

Taking a deep breath, he confirmed it with his own mouth. "I knew you would tell me when you were ready. I'm not actually that surprised; well, I know I shouldn't be after knowing all the things I do about vampires. Now I know I _have_ to do what I've been planning to."

She could have sworn she _heard_ the blood drain from their friends' faces, including her own. "W-What do you mean, Tsukune?"

He smiled that same, carefree smile that had endeared her to him. "I told you I would get stronger. I need to be able to protect you, all of you," he said, gesturing to the group behind her. "I have a Familiar now and I hardly know her, I'm a vampire now and I hardly know myself. For whatever reason my rosary still allows me to use these borrowed powers, but that's not as important as knowing the person they came from. Every one of you has helped me so much ever since I came here, now I need to be ready to help you. The headmaster thought it would be a good idea for me to go to Paradise over Summer Break to get to know Rei-chan and my new abilities. I'm spending the first month there. Alone."

Kurumu wasn't being fooled. "You mean he forced you into it, didn't he?"

Tsukune scratched his neck as he chuckled. "At first, I'll admit. When that other vampire came, I knew I needed it. If there's one place I'll get stronger, it'll be there."

"And he shall be under my watch; there is no reason for fear," Rei spoke up as she walked to his side.

Out of all of them, Kokoa surprised everyone by being the most supportive. "I think it's great. A Familiar can be a big help, but only if they trust you. Taking the time to get to know her in her own environment will only help you both in the long run."

"B-But he'll be _gone_ ~desu!" Yukari wailed like it was the end of the world.

"You can only get so far under a teacher. Sometimes you have to make what you've been taught your own. Isn't that right?"

It took a while for him to recover his tongue from the unexpected assistance. "My thoughts exactly. Besides, there'll still be some vacation time left when I get back."

"But what'll you eat, how'll you _live!_" Kurumu ranted.

He flashed them his fangs. "The same way vampires have always lived. That's the point."

All at once something returned to her, something she had never quite understood that was said by the headmaster when Rei came into the picture.

.

'**Ah, but what if my goal is the same as yours?'**

.

_Just how far ahead has he planned?_ It was insane, but in almost every other way it was absolutely perfect. Paradise was a realm filled with the rare and unknown, there was no telling what could happen if he was forced to live there for an extended period of time. This in mind, she gave him a loving smile. "I don't like it but it does make sense. We've known you for a long time, maybe we _should_ let the newbie get to know what made us all fall in love with you."

Moka looked conflicted, for varying reasons, but it was her inner self that offered the truth she needed. _**…He's right. As much as I loathe to admit it, he's right. Alexander is still recovering, making any further attempts on us unlikely for the moment. It would be assumed he's taken us somewhere, seeing as how we were supposed to be his 'gift'. If Tsukune's going to do this, this is the time.**_

_Sometimes I hate it when you're right,_ she replied, and the white-haired vampiress smiled sadly.

_**Sometimes, **_**I**_** hate it when I'm right.**_

"I guess it's for the best," she decided outwardly. "It's not like we should have been able to go to the human world until after graduation in the first place. We'd be stuck somewhere, here's as good a place as any. It'll be lonely without you."

He swallowed hard, looking over each of them in turn. "You're telling me. I wouldn't do this if I wasn't sure I needed to."

"But you _don't_ need to ~desu!" Yukari cried as she clasped to his front. "You can stay with us, like you always have!"

He stroked her short hair comfortingly. "All of us have a place we need to be. I've never relied only on myself, I've had all of you every step of the way. Even doing this, I'll still have Rei-chan right by me. If we're going to fight together, we need to know each other, and if I want to get any stronger, I need to know myself. This is something you can't help me with. I need to do this on my own."

She sniffled. "Darn you, getting all smart on me all of a sudden ~d-desu…"

At that he laughed. "We'll see about that when they post the scores from the exams. You'll have me beat in that every time."

His joke cajoled laughter from her as well, when with one final squeeze she let him go. "You had better know what you're doing."

"I ask myself that question every day," he responded with a smile. "I'm leaving as soon as I can, if I don't I might talk myself out of it. I've had way too much time to do that already."

"You know I could always freeze you and keep you from doing this, right?" a soft voice said from his side as a hand placed itself on his shoulder. He just kept smiling as he placed his own on top of it, allowing the cold to overtake his skin. She gasped lightly when her hand was being held by one so like hers, and unwittingly tightened her hold. "That's just making me want to keep you more."

"If that vampire's going to think I'm Tsukune the Snowman, might as well make something of it."

Not for the first time were the others shocked into speechlessness. Having never seen the transformation firsthand, they finally began to realize what Mizore really meant when she said he was remembering their powers. At least it gave them a bit more peace of mind. Returning to normal, he hugged each of them tightly, which, unsurprisingly, they were hardly satisfied with and wrangled him into one breathless kiss after another, all except Kokoa and Yukari naturally. He gave Kokoa a grin that made her stutter and look away quickly, and to Yukari another kiss on the cheek.

"Stay safe, I'll be back before you know it."

Taking Rei's hand, the two walked away, leaving a group ruled by silence behind them.

"I don't know about all of you, but I'm not going to let him be the only one getting stronger!" Kurumu proclaimed firmly when he was out of sight. "He's got the right idea; he knows we're probably going to be fighting more vampires now! Instead of focusing on what we can't change, he's focusing on what he can! We've got the time now, let's do something with it! We've never let any of us fight alone if we can help it, so let's help it!"

She received nothing but agreement.

"We can have sleepovers ~desu! A one month training camp!"

Inner Moka looked on approvingly, smiling down the path Tsukune had taken. _**Even when he's gone, he's still an inspiration. We may be sealed, Omote, but maybe it's time you learn how to do more than just run scared.**_

Her other self groaned. _What have I told you about calling me that, Ura-chan! Still, you might be right. You're the fighter though, not me. I don't have your strength, I can't fight like you._

_**Then I'll just have to teach you **_**where**_** to hit. You may not be able to fight like me, but that's no reason for you not to know how to fight before I'm released.**_

She groaned again. The first four weeks of their Summer Break had been planned out, and she was sure she wasn't going to like them very much.

_**I heard that!**_

…

**Author's Notes:** And there you have it, the next chapter. Chock full of angst, fluff, revelations, and my own take on some things. I got one review that mentioned Moka's name and my so-called 'mistake' on it, so I'm glad I had planned to explain that this chapter. Honestly, I think that's what it is. Kokoa and Kahlua, those loyal to their father—or so far with Kokoa—go by Shuzen, whereas Moka has always been known as Akashiya, and clearly her mother means a lot to her ever since the beginning of the series.

Also, there was a couple that mentioned my requesting of more reviews last chapter. I meant no ill will, nor was I complaining. The drop just made me question what I had done wrong, and I was hoping to prove my reasoning wrong. I'm sorry to those I might have offended, hopefully that explains it.

Anyways, as always, I hope you enjoyed the chapter!


	15. To Know A Vampire

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Rosario+Vampire, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story. Simple enough, ne? Just don't copy from this story and we're all good!

…

**To Know A Vampire**

…

The true enormity of what he had gotten himself into didn't sink in to Tsukune Aono's mind until the damning sound of a great stone door closing hit his ears. Paradise stretched out before him; a huge, untamed wilderness home to the rarest—and in some cases _fiercest_—monsters to have ever walked the earth. His gut was doing somersaults and twisting in the most unpleasant of ways, yet he knew this needed to be done. He couldn't just be adequate with using the borrowed blood of his friends, he needed to be _exactly_ like them. He needed to get to the point where he could summon bladed glaciers with a wave of his hand, like Mizore could. He needed to get to the point where he could cast a glance at a schoolyard full of people and have them all under his spell, like Kurumu could. The truth of the matter was he needed to be _better_ than them, which was an impossible feat. It was in the journey for the impossible that would make him stronger, and that was all he wanted.

As much as it scared his human mindset, he knew he could only get so far with instruction, what he needed was real-life, truly real-life-_threatening_ experience. He _had_ the powers, he just needed to learn how to _use_ them. It was something he couldn't do against the people he cared for more than anything. He needed enemies that weren't going to be afraid to try to _kill_ him, that would force him to respond in kind. That would force him to _grow._

He had felt something during his fight with Alexander, for the first time truly _felt_ the moisture in the air around him. He had felt the molecules slow at his command, grow upon one another into the formations his mind created and fire at his opponent like they were comrades fighting a common enemy. Even now something else was constantly in his awareness, the crooning song of the animals and life around him. It was easy enough to block out, but the call was there, the energy he knew Ruby and Yukari could manipulate. If he was indeed capable of magic now it made him wish he had asked Ruby for some kind of notes, just for some basics to practice while he was training.

It couldn't really be called training though. It wasn't. Training was something done voluntarily under repeatable circumstances, a set plan designed with the purpose of improvement. What he was doing was not training, what he had in mind was something he knew he needed. What he was doing was _surviving_. There was no set plan; he had come to a monster's paradise to improve, yes, but not in any logical way. Though he had brought plenty of books—some for the next semester already—he planned on spending the majority of his time fighting, and if he wasn't, then he would be looking for fights. Truthfully, not having any food to speak of in an immediate sense terrified him, especially knowing where the food he would need would have to come from. He knew he would get over it, only looking at the situation from the start it appeared to be a daunting task. Which, it most likely was.

One thing he hadn't expected however was the smell of charcoal, easily explained when he looked around and saw the skeletal remains of what might have once been thriving plant life, burned away in a pattern that suggested a projectile-like explosion upon the door he had just exited from. While no mark scathed the surface, there was certainly evidence on the forest all around it. Looking to Rei, her morose expression as she surveyed the scene told him all he needed to know.

"Hey, don't worry about it," he soothed softly. "It'll grow back, better than before. This is only temporary."

She nodded mutely. "That I understand, nestling. Seeing this…the conditions of their creation merely gave me pause."

Comprehension came to him and he smiled whimsically. "Rei-chan, it's okay. You made it in time, there's no reason to dwell on it."

Another nod answered him, but her face was hidden from his view. "While I know that to be the truth, 'twas something I would rather not experience again."

"We're here now so you won't have to."

Her jaw tightened, and when she looked up at him he saw the same look of determination he had seen in his friends so many times before. "You are right, of course. 'Twill be my mission to make you recognized in this realm, even in your current form."

A nervous chuckle escaped him. "What…exactly do you mean by that?"

Reaching over, she pulled the pack heavy with books and other necessities from his hand like it weighed less than nothing. Shouldering it expertly she pointed to the horizon, where the peaks of mountains loomed in the distance. "Do you perceive the spires over yonder?" With a gulp, he nodded. "Good, then you know our next destination. 'Twas fortunate we set out when we did; if we encounter minimal resistance we should arrive by nightfall."

Tsukune gulped, willing down the unease that had taken residence in his heart. "You said something about…resistance?"

Her smile was entirely too unnerving. "In this form I do not inspire the same terror, as unlike you, my Youki is almost solely concentrated in the growth and upkeep of my physical being, thus not flaring quite as theatrically as yours would. Sealed as you are the difference in external indicators between us is marginal, admittedly, however, this is my domain. For the ensuing trek I will be nothing but a shadow keeping you on the correct path, those taking offense to your presence will be yours to deal with. If you truly wish to grow stronger I will accommodate you, but 'twould be a mistake to believe me a gentle mistress."

Frost crawled up his fingertips as he gazed resolutely at the goal that seemed so far off. It fit his earlier thoughts perfectly. He couldn't back down now that he had been given his first challenge. He _would_ get stronger, that he had sworn.

"Well what are we waiting for? We're wasting daylight."

She laughed. "Ironic that is, to be said by a vampire. You are born to darkness, no truer creature of the night there is than you. There will be times I shall call you to remember that, I assure you."

If he was bothered by her words he gave no sign of it, instead setting off into the forest before him. She smiled before she followed him.

…

Hours had passed since that time and Tsukune's shirt was soaked with sweat. He had refused to slow his pace even once, but things were catching up on him. Rei was somewhere in the trees around him, still in her human form to avoid warding off any predators, yet even with that he hadn't seen any sign of anything. At first he had been grateful for the mercy being shown him unknowingly, now was no such time. He was weakening; the need for fresh blood was taking over his thoughts, demanding his body be sustained. Not feeding from any of his family before he left had been a tactical mistake, one he was now paying dearly for.

The sky and the planets above were shifting in preparation for the oncoming blackness of night, turning trees and plants into gangly shadows and shifting noises that had his senses on high alert. It didn't matter, not then. Normally feeding every day was a luxury and he knew that, here he knew it would become a requirement. He couldn't afford to weaken in the environment surrounding him. He needed to be in top form; thirsty like he was, he was anything but. His eyes darted around at the slightest sound, his supernatural radar thrown out as far as he could. He wasn't afraid of what he would encounter, rather the opposite, searching stubbornly for his next meal without straying from the path of the ever-nearing mountains.

Wind came upon him out of the blue in a huge gale, so fast he barely had the time to jump when his senses screamed warning of the oncoming Youki. He managed, and was glad he did because the wild grass under him had been shaved like a finely cut lawn. The next caught him unaware, shredding the bottom of his pants and sending him hissing to one knee, holding cuts that were very much there but not bleeding. It was an annoyance if ever there was one, thankfully without losing blood there was no chance of him weakening further. It left him to wonder if he was truly being attacked or just being pestered however.

The breeze picked up again and this time he didn't wait for it to enlarge, he jumped to the side at the first tickle of light in his radar, once again saving him from being hit. This continued twice more before the lack of food, his long trek, and now the invisible attackers snapped his fraying patience.

"You wanna attack me! Fine! Attack me!" he bellowed, his arms already encased in ice.

When the wind came next snow came with it, thick fog congealing the air into soup, just as Mizore had taught him. He may not have been able to make huge icicles from nothing while he was sealed, but he knew enough to thicken the particles already in the air. At the earliest notice of those molecules being disturbed he tightened his hold, intent on freezing his opponent solid. It worked, as frightened yelps caught his ears soon later. Dispelling the fog at the same time as his transformation, he found his enemies in the form of a trio of large rodents with blades as claws. His ice hadn't had the effect he desired, likely because of the speed they had been moving at, but it froze enough of their bodies for them to be incapacitated.

"What the heck?"

"Kamaitachi," Rei answered as she jumped down from the tree nearest him, earning a flinch from her partner at the unexpectedness. "My cave is near. Sickle Weasels do not stray far from mountains, and their determent played a part in the location I chose. The mountain of my nest is also home to their remaining numbers. 'Tis almost humorous; were they not prone to stem the bleeding of their victims you might have been in significantly more peril."

Tuskune rolled his eyes. "Yeah, funny funny, har har; danger's fun, isn't it? If I wasn't here for things like this I would wonder why my Familiar _wants_ me to get hurt."

The bronze-skinned girl glared at him, hurt clear in her steel eyes. "Do not question my loyalty. 'Twas _only_ due to your desire I stayed my talons. Making you stronger at the cost of your safety goes against everything I know as your partner and protector, but I will do it. I do not do things partly. A cruel mistress I may seem, but if ever your mortality was in jeopardy I did not believe you capable of managing I would be by your side in an instant. 'Twould do you well to remember that."

It occurred to him that his sarcasm was lost on her. Her speech suggested differently, but she was still very young and prone to misunderstandings, like the kind he had just instigated. "Rei-chan, wait! I'm sorry, I was being sarcastic. I didn't mean it seriously."

She rubbed her eyes, keeping him set in a skeptical glance. "Do _not_ question my loyalty," she repeated with a sniffle, and he held her against him tightly.

"I said I'm sorry. I'm just really thirsty, and this hike hasn't exactly been a walk in the park either. I didn't mean to sound angry, I really didn't," he allayed quickly, and was relieved when she eventually relaxed into his hold, tightening her own around him.

"Facetiousness does not become you," she mumbled into his shoulder, and despite himself he laughed.

"So it would seem."

Escaping his arms, the young Familiar smiled. "Your meal has been well-earned this night. Drink from them, then we will proceed. As punishment for your ill-placed humor, my consideration of offering you my blood to break your fast on the morrow has been rescinded, so take as much as you can. I would warn against killing any monster here, as they are all scarce in quantity, as you well know. The animals of the human world have been introduced for that purpose."

He seemed horrified at the thought. "I would never kill anything!"

A silver brow arched. "Truly? I sense you do indeed mean that. Interesting. Do you not eat the meat of the beasts of burden slain for your consumption when lifeblood is unavailable? Vampires such as yourself may be able to keep from slaying their prey when they feed, but a reputation from darker times precedes them. That is, to my understanding."

He chuckled mirthlessly. "I'm going to tell you a new story tonight, Rei-chan. Would you like that?"

Her mood changed immediately to bright and excited in the blink of an eye. "What tonight? More of star-crossed lovers doomed to face oblivion? Or perhaps another tale of ill-fated vengeance destined to apocalyptic results?" Nodding animatedly, her expression turned thoughtful. "To be truthful, I would so prefer a joyful conclusion for once. Accounts of these tragedies are comedic, yet I find myself wary of wishing such an ending upon ourselves inadvertently by thinking so."

"No, tonight I'm going to start telling you a story that hasn't been finished yet: _my_ story."

She stilled, new curiosity burning inside her. "Feed quickly then, I am eager to hear of the exploits of my partner before my existence."

"You won't believe your ears, I can guarantee that."

With three bodies to feed from—and no need to worry about causing pain in the process—he was able to replenish his strength to full with little difficulty. The weasels would be a bit lightheaded for a while, but otherwise he prided himself on his ability to not take more than he needed from any one source. Altogether he had still drunk a full body's worth, he was sure. Their trip was completed rather easily after that, though Tsukune's body ached in more than a few places despite his feeding. He turned away quickly when he saw Rei readying herself to shuck her t-shirt robe, almost relieved when he heard the gentle rumblings of enormous footsteps shake the gigantic cavern she had lead him to.

That new awareness tickled his ears again, the familiar tingle of a voice carried on the very wind, if not the wind itself, and this time he looked up sharply at what he heard there. It was weak, just as his sense was, or in all likelihood _because_ his sense was. _'I am excited to hear your tale, nestling,' _a burning voice spoke, vibrating through the breeze.

He stared at her dumbly for a few moments before blinking himself back to consciousness. "Now I get what Ruby meant when she said I'd understand you eventually anyways. You can't really _talk_ talk in your true form, can you?"

Her head—nearly larger than he was by itself now—shook a negative. _'I am indeed incapable of your words through my throat. The elements are my voice, only those who can listen to them can hear me.'_

"When you aren't human," he corrected, and she nodded.

'_Precisely. I will likely have to return to it so I can watch over you unnoticed in the coming days, but let us leave our minds of such thoughts for now. If you are able, I would be inclined to hear the story of my unusual vampire partner.'_

Tsukune laughed quietly. "Yeah, we haven't really gotten to know each other that well, have we? That's the other reason I thought this would be a good idea. Now let's see, how do I start?" His lips curled upwards as a thought hit him, and he settled down against one of the paws of the large white dragon.

"Once upon a time…one perfectly average, extraordinarily ordinary human accidentally enrolled in a school for monsters…"

.

V^^^V

.

"What do you think Tsukune's doing right now?"

The question, said amongst a roomful of females fitted in pajamas and sitting on futons and pillows, had been asked by the violet-eyed vision of eroticism, Kurumu Kurono. After a day of preparations and mock spars between those willing to learn from the Black and White Duet—as physical stamina wasn't exactly Ruby or Yukari's best point by any extension of the word—the six were settled comfortably in the elder mage's room. It was the largest after all, being staff did have _some_ perks.

Kokoa had taken nearly malicious glee in helping her sealed sister learn how to actually dodge and not just run or wait to be unsealed, and poor Moka was now nursing healing wounds under her new set of comfy pajamas. It hadn't been the first time she had been actively involved in something while conversing with the vampiress within, but it was the first time she had done so in the heat of battle. Then again, that first time the situation had been reversed and _she_ was the one helping, not fighting. Being more of a pacifist herself she didn't like fighting, but she understood the point her other self had made. They had come so far already, she couldn't let it be her that screwed everything up when push came to shove. Not ever again.

Now that the adrenaline rush of the afternoon was over and she was actually allowed to think more than three seconds ahead, she realized she was wondering exactly the same thing as her succubus friend. "I don't know," she replied worriedly. "When he and Ura-chan trained she kept most of the monsters away with our Youki alone…when she wanted to. They were there though, and now he's there with a seal even stronger than the Holy Lock…"

Her younger sister—who had been examining her hair in the wall-length mirror off to the side—sighed in frustration. "With a _dragon_ that would sooner use the headmaster as a toothpick than let him die! Relax, jeez. I don't know what you're so worried about. Personally, I think it's great."

"Not surprising since you've had it out for him since day one," Kurumu muttered sarcastically as she rolled her eyes. Thus, she was stunned when the junior actually looked ashamed of herself.

"I'll give you that one. Just because I refuse to fall to this 'disease' you all seem to have doesn't mean I hate him _now_ though. I can respect how far he'll go to protect Onee-sama, but it's not like I need to love him or anything. He has all of you for that," the redhead responded matter-of-factly.

The succubus whistled. "I must really not give you enough credit. If you can take one of his bites and still say that you must be something else!"

Scarlet frosted the vampiress' cheeks momentarily. _I said 'love'. '_Lust_' is a completely different thing._

"Or the more likely possibility is she's just too stubborn to admit it," Mizore reasoned glibly, turning Kokoa into a blubbering mess of denials and death threats, all of which were promptly ignored by the women assembled in favor of continuing to watch her flustered tirade.

"Methinks the lady doth protest too much ~desu!" Yukari quoted sagely, only to be ruined by her trademark conclusion.

"Come on, give the poor girl a break," Moka said, not without her own smile however. "I can't wait to meet the kind of guy that'll finally catch her heart."

For once, the redhead looked at the sealed form of her sister with actual gratitude. "…Thank you," she murmured softly, and the pink-haired woman smiled back.

"Love isn't something I'd joke about. Crushes and infatuations maybe, but when you meet that one…something's _different_. It might not start all at once, but there's something there that keeps you by their side. Before you know it stupid things start happening when you're around them, things you wouldn't do with anyone else, and wouldn't find funny with any other person. Then one day you wake up and realize you were wishing he'd be right beside you in bed, just so the first thing you could see would be his face as you start the day. Then when you _do_ see him…the good dream becomes a better reality and nothing really matters anymore…" She sighed wistfully, her gaze a million miles away, as did the rest of the group. Even if Kokoa didn't love _him_, she wasn't about to deny that that sounded like a wonderful thing to experience.

"I wonder when that'll happen to me," the awakening vampiress pondered, longing plain in her voice. The base attraction she felt to Tsukune was nothing but her blood reacting to his formidable presence, she could only hope that was the case. She would find someone when the time was right, but that didn't make her stop praying that the right time would be now.

Yukari wasn't going to let her off that easily, and her ensuing grin was nothing if not unnerving. "What do you mean? You've already seen him in your dreams, haven't you?"

They had never seen her go so red so fast, from the tips of her toes to the very roots of her hair, and this time she could only mutter nonsensical ramblings before her brain finally caught up. "How the hell do you know about that!" she shrieked in complete and utter embarrassment. When her brain caught up to _that_ one, she slapped her hands over her mouth so quickly it would have left a bruise on any other person.

Ruby grinned, though she wasn't without empathy for the younger woman. "It would be hard for us _not_ to know about it. We all had the same dream."

Kokoa's mouth flapped noiselessly, uncomprehending, before she saw the uncomfortable expression on the succubus of their group. Understanding hit the knowledgeable vampiress like a bucket of ice water, turning dark green irises blood red as her mortification and fury skyrocketed. It hadn't been a dream so much as it had been a _shared incident_. It was also the _last_ thing the frustrated teen wanted to know.

"You. Are. Dead!"

It would be great motivation for the rest of the month, not to mention food for thought.

The words 'Pillow Fight' took on whole new meaning.

.

V^^^V

.

It had been very late in the evening when they had arrived at Rei's cave, yet with the onset of the storytelling time and fatigue were completely ignored. Tsukune simply talked, relaying his good and bad times at Youkai Academy to his Familiar without once being interrupted. The silvery dragon laid in rapt attention to his account, only growling or whimpering quietly in key places where she could _feel_ his anger or anguish not just in his voice, but in her heart as well. Try as he might to suggest otherwise, he was a very convincing speaker when he wanted to be. In places where his excitement shone she felt like she was right beside him in his joy, and where the depths of despair threatened to swallow him whole she couldn't resist nuzzling his cheek with her nose, to offer him comfort even in the past.

She was still young to the world, but not totally uninformed, especially when he took the time to explain the lives of regular people in the Human World in their day and age when he noticed her confusion. Her instincts drew her to a wiser outlook naturally, yet some of the things he had gone through, a few by whom she knew he considered nothing less than mates in his heart, made her growl deep in her chest. She was glad her youth was different than other races, for if she ever acted like how his friends had at times she would sooner spend the rest of her nigh immortal life in her cave. Still, jealousy and love did strange things to all creatures, and she knew that, especially when combined. When the urge became stronger she knew one day she would fall prey to them as well, her blood had prepared her for that much.

When he drew to a close streams of sunlight were already crawling their way up the mouth of her home, hinting indisputably at how much time had passed. Luckily the depth of the cavern would succeed in holding off their advance any further, so the vampire currently yawning against her would be able to get some sleep—the vampire who was once _human_.

'_I…Words fail to describe…'_

He smiled tiredly at her as he patted he paw before stretching with a groan. Making his way to his overfull pack he pulled the rolled up blanket from the top and snuck out a pillow. "I know this is technically cheating but I wasn't going to go for a month without a pillow or blanket. I could care less about making a tent or something, but I'm not going without these things."

Despite herself she coughed out a smoky chuckle, amused at his blatant disregard of her words. _'Indeed. Sleep well, nestling. My queries shall be postponed until we are rested.'_

The feeling that kindled inside her when he set himself up next to her constantly heated body in the groove that served as her bed was impossible to explain. She knew he was seeking out her warmth, but nonetheless she never failed to be surprised by the trust he put in people. What passed for a smile on her scaled face drew on her lips as the soft breathing of sleep started from him almost instantly. With a pleased grunt she curled up tighter, content to join him in slumber.

The days would pass quickly, and they had much they needed to learn, both about themselves _and_ each other.

…

While one had gone to sleep barely an hour earlier, others were already waking up. Characterized by a light coating of feathers, cotton, and overall disarray, the room just went to show what happened when six monsters—or four and two boundary beings—went at it with pillows. Ruby was the first to wake, as her day usually started earlier than most, and she groaned when she saw the state of her room. Having been too tired to do anything about it the night before, the damage was glaring in the light of day. They had a lot of work to do. The causes of the mess would be cleaning her room before they resumed training, she would see to that. At least her large desk off to the side had escaped harm. Her books, sewing machine, and alchemic components were compiled there. Had _they_ come to see damage, not even Moka's Super Vampire self would have escaped unscathed. Masochist or not, she was quite proficient in _inflicting_ pain as well.

Her muscles protested mightily as she righted herself in bed and the poor witch groaned again, this time for a much more physical reason. She was a fearsome force with her magic and transformations, yet without those she was nothing more than a regular human woman. She had gotten in the habit of carrying at least one of her accessories with her at all times, however the fact remained were she to be deprived of them in battle she would be nothing more than cannon fodder. She was never totally defenseless, she had more than enough training using her wings and other forms to understand how to move—and fight, more or less—but only a fool turned away a chance for improvement when it was offered to them. Mizore and Kurumu were incredible. Apart they were both high-class monsters with abilities no one in their right mind wanted to get on the wrong side of, together they were a force few were capable of handling. Period.

She may lack the demonic strength inherent in her friends' bodies, but she was no pushover. If nothing else the training would serve to build her natural awareness to the energies she controlled, and that was never a bad thing. While Yukari was a genius with a grasp on metaphysical theories that she had taken years longer to understand, the fact remained she was years younger as well, her body less capable of some of the feats her magic bestowed upon her. The workouts they were enduring would do nothing but help her, so she was more than willing to put up with the aching of her muscles.

She had spent enough time, maybe even too much time reading and studying, she needed to start putting into practice what she had learned. The knowledge only went to waste if she wasn't able to use it practically. The headmaster had helped her there, she knew that. If not for all the running around she did on a regular basis she would be significantly weaker, and his demand on her continued studies as requisite for her position was a higher education than she could get anywhere else, especially orphaned and penniless as she had been when she was brought to the academy. He had all but outright told her so. She was forever in his debt, but there was still one creditor that held more claim to her. He would always come first in her heart, regardless of duty.

Speaking of which, she had something she needed to give him. It wasn't terribly important, or at least it didn't need to be done right away. She couldn't let the others on to her plan so soon after he had left anyways. She could only imagine what he had gone through already, and how much stronger he would be when they saw him next. In all honesty she knew the Test had been a last resort, but it was either that or cover him in crosses. Without the Artifact sealed amidst the links it would be significantly weaker, but it would have served its purpose regardless. No vampire could resist the holy power of crosses, especially in numbers. If anything, the Test gave him more access to his abilities than seventy-seven seals would have otherwise, and if not for that he probably wouldn't have survived his encounter with Alexander. The strength of some Youkai always amazed her. To think some would even be able to _stand_ under so much constraint was amazing enough, to know most underwent it _voluntarily_ more so.

Summer Vacation had started at last but they had a plan they needed to stick to. Yukari was more adept at animating inorganic objects than her, but that didn't mean she didn't know how to do it. With a wave of her wand the feathers in the room came to life, set to do her bidding, where she let them loose on the unsuspecting bodies of her sleeping friends. Disgruntled slaps came from them at first, then slowly the laughter and squirming started, before finally they were all giggling uproariously and wide awake, begging for mercy.

"Up and at'em everyone! Another day's begun, and we can start by cleaning my room!"

There were five simultaneous groans. They knew they deserved it, but that certainly didn't make them _like_ it.

…

Cleaning and breakfast later, the group saw themselves outside, away from the dorms and buildings of the school layout. They wanted privacy after all. Mizore and Kurumu had easily noticed the discomfort displayed by the witches and were now helping them perform various stretches to help in flexibility and ease pain. They knew the boundary beings didn't have the same potency of Youkai healing, but their muscles would still heal far faster than a regular human's would. It was in the tearing and reformation of the muscles that grew mass, so they would give them time to heal and work on more strength training the next day. There were plenty of other things to do in the meantime.

And for the second day in a row, Moka Akashiya found herself staring down her younger half-sister, Kou perched comfortably on her shoulder. Even before her hair had started changing she was a difficult opponent who thrived in battle, knowing her power was only growing while she herself had to remain sealed was not a comforting thought.

_**Focus, Omote, remember what I told you yesterday. If she doesn't come at us with intent, you won't grow,**_ her inner self spoke confidently through their link.

_But you saw what happened! Maybe I'm just not cut out for this!_

_**You are a Vampire!**_ The sealed being roared, causing her outer self to flinch. Knowing this, the white-haired woman softened her tone. _**We are one, Omote. In this, we have to be. Without me we aren't going to be able to win the coming fights, not with Tsukune sealed. Without you, I'm lost anyway. You need to be able to read blows and incapacitate attackers, however momentary it may be. Your strength isn't so insignificant that you would lose to a lesser monster if you actually tried, but if you can learn how to move and where to hit, you might be able to hold your own for a little while should worst come to worst. Any time is better than no time at all.**_

The pacifist sighed. She knew she was right. If it came down to protecting the ones she loved or upholding her antiviolence ways and watching them get slaughtered, she would choose fighting no matter what. At the next encounter a stronger vampire might come, and maybe, just maybe with every single one of them—including Kokoa—they might be able to triumph without her or Tsukune's help. They needed her there and she knew it. It was all meaningless if something happened to any of them, and thinking something wouldn't if she wasn't there was just wishful thinking at this point.

_All right, let's do this._

She took the stance she had been taught the previous day, already feeling the familiarity in her body. Her muscles remembered what they had done, even if it was under a different personality. She just needed to learn how to use it. With a quick critique by her inner self, she nodded to Kokoa, who smiled a bit too threateningly.

Just like that they were moving, dizzying directions being shouted over the din of impacts by the true vampire within. Her body knew what to do before she did, instantly reacting to the commands she needed to follow to keep it alive. It was extremely hard to focus on the two things at once, the visual input of what she knew she was seeing and what she wanted to do instinctively, and instead having to follow the words being forced directly into her brain. Ducking under the huge mace directed at her head she jumped back at her inner's order, already twisting to lunge around the new crater formed when the weapon struck dirt and stuck.

_**Index knuckle out! Support it properly; we don't want to break our fingers going for the pressure points!**_ She did as she was told, going over all the cluster areas her younger sister and her seal-bound self had drilled into her the day prior as she did. _**If you can't reach the throat go for the arms on a weapon-user! Take out their ability to use their weapon and you've gained a huge advantage!**_

Jumping to the side to avoid another swing, she leaped over the subsequent one, slamming her fist down into the open thigh of her sister. The younger woman gasped brokenly as her leg gave out on her but that was all the time Moka needed, quickly sending two more to her left and right biceps respectively. Drunk on adrenaline and reacting purely on instinct and the vampiress' commands, she was all but unaware of Kokoa dropping her Familiar as her arms momentarily went numb with pain, dropping all guard to her chest and allowing a powerful strike right under her developing breasts to her solar plexus. She was thrown back by the force, landing gasping for breath as she let her regeneration heal the trembling of her muscles. Pressure point strikes were just as effective on vampires as any other humanoid monster, but they still took less time to heal. They were useful, but hardly an effective way to win a fight unless it was done by another vampire with the force needed to truly incapacitate.

Moka was panting in exertion as Kokoa picked herself up from the ground and rubbed the smarting sinew of her body, nearly good as new, but the look she set on her older sister was one of growing respect.

"Nice. Very nice, Onee-chan. Keep this up and I might actually have to reevaluate what I think of you." It was as close to a compliment as she was going to get from Kokoa. Picking up Kou, the vampiress changed him into something more durable. While not what she was used to, it would help her sister gain experience and that was all that mattered. "Now, again!"

The pink-haired woman groaned, but took up her stance.

A defeat: "Again!"

A victory: "Again!"

On and on it went, until dry clothes were soaked with sweat, long hair laid limp against her back, and the sun had almost made a full pass through the sky. Every single time the result was the same. "Again!"

She had been right, she definitely wasn't going to like the next month very much. Though it went against her normally kind personality, she took comfort in knowing whatever she was going through, Tsukune was going through something twice as bad.

Later on, she would come to realize just how much of an understatement that had been.

…

Tsukune awoke with a start at the end of another strange dream, which once again quickly eluded his memory and faded to oblivion. At least he was rested. When his eyes adjusted to the pitch darkness around him—that took hardly any time at all, he noted—he saw the wall beside him was moving. That was when he realized the wall beside him wasn't a wall, but the side of Rei's enormous torso. She was almost the size of the school's bus by now, and to think she could become larger still was mind-boggling. He rested his hand against a warm scale, heated from the inside by fire just a breath away, and as he did that the large reptile sighed sleepily. Grunting unexpectedly, the silver-white dragon shuffled away and stretched like an oversized cat. Light glinted from the massive teeth in her equally large maw as she yawned widely, and flame burst from her nostrils as she cleared her throat.

It was the earth beneath him that resonated this time, and from its solid foundation her sophisticated voice rumbled into existence. '_'Tis good to see you again, nestling; did you sleep well?_'

"Very," he replied contently as he stretched as well. With a quick look around, and out the mouth of the cave, he put his face in his hand. "And…it's night. Well, that's just great. There goes my sleep schedule."

She chuckled throatily, which sounded more like an earthquake than an actual laugh. _''Tis good a time as any to hone your instincts. Night is your true realm; we should work to exploit it. If you can hunt at night, your skill during the day will only prosper.'_

"Key word being 'if'," he clarified with a whine. Leaving for a moment to relieve himself, he returned to find her back in her human form, thankfully with her huge t-shirt already on. "So, what's the plan for tonight then?"

"I would like to discuss you, if I may be so bold," she responded simply as she plopped herself down on his blanket, where he followed.

"Go ahead. I told you everything for a reason. We can't be partners if you don't know who I am."

Rei smiled appreciatively. "So 'tis true you were once merely human? No more than a boy cast here unwittingly by his parents?"

"That about sums it up," he answered softly as he rubbed the back of his neck.

Clear awe was in her eyes, joined by a laugh he had rarely heard in her human form. "I must confess: I have underestimated you, and your instincts. I did not think it possible being I above all know the strength of your blood through our pact. You, a mere human, survived through an academy full of monsters, that being the least of your accomplishments with a den of women willing to protect you, and you them. I felt the intensity of your feelings through your blood, just as my mother did. Now the reason is apparent. 'Tis little wonder why I would feel drawn to you."

There was only one response to that. "Huh?"

She grinned at his confusion. "Do not concern yourself any further, nestling; 'tis unimportant in the grander scheme of things."

"Now I have a question for you," Tsukune countered instantly. "Why do you call me 'nestling' all the time? I thought I was the older one here."

That rare laugh reverberated through the expansive cave, dark and sensuous even in a childlike tone. "As I told our treasures: my race does not stay your definition of 'children' for long. Be that as it may, while in the safety of the nest there is no more fierce a protector in any realm than a mother dragon. You, who are so small yet so gallant, are worth no less to me than my own nestlings should that day come."

He didn't know what to say to that. To know he was so important to her as to be compared to something like that was incredible, but also incredibly confusing. "Now don't get mad at me for what I'm about to say next, okay Rei-chan?" Perplexed, the dark-skinned child nodded her agreement. "Don't you feel…I don't know…_forced_ to feel like that? I mean I 'knocked up', as in literally beat the daylights out of your mom, and she repays me by giving me _you?_ You're the first of your kind in…in hundreds of years! Some idiotic moves on my part and suddenly I've got one of the most…_mythical_ creatures in existence as my Familiar? Don't you feel like I've taken away your freedom?"

She stared at him for a long time after that, blinking dazedly, before falling over backwards and howling in laughter. This was one thing he had never, ever, seen before, and whenever he thought she was done she would look back at him and start laughing again. As she finally sat back up, wiping her eyes of the tears that had grown in the action, she couldn't help but chuckle again. "Oh, Tsukki, you do so amaze me. _This_ was a factor in that inexplicable magnetism. My mother did not _give_ me to you, I _chose_ you. You would never consider me a servant, nor would you expect me to think you my master. I have felt your heart, Tsukune Aono, and I wished to be a part of it. True, you did fulfill the conditions as set by most Familiar codes, but had I not chosen you, you would have received one of my purely instinctive Wyvern cousins. I was…_am_ in no way _forced_ to be with you. The choice was mine to make; never shall I regret it."

Stunned into silence once more, when he did speak again it wasn't what she thought he would comment on. "I'm not even going to ask _why_ you chose to call me _Tsukki_ the first time you say my name. Really, of all the things…Kyou-chan's going to kill me," he griped as he shook his head in his hands.

Rei cocked her head to the side worriedly. "You are speaking of your cousin, correct? The very one who brought the Ririsu Mirror to your school?" He nodded. "She addresses you as Tsukki as well?"

He sighed again. "Ever since we were kids."

"Truly she must have seen your true worth even as a human," she concluded softly, and he looked up sharply, bewilderment all over his face. She smiled adoringly. "If I am to understand these languages correctly, your name is most commonly interpreted as a chicken dish, is that not so?"

"I guess even when I was born my parents thought I was pretty ordinary," he quipped back with a grin. "Then again, with how much Moka loves to drink my blood, maybe they just thought I looked tasty." They both had to share a laugh at the truth in the otherwise joking statement.

"I prefer to think they thought you as something otherworldly," the dragon replied gently as she scooted closer to continue, "A melody from the moon; a gift from above. Tsukki suits you nicely. It eliminates all misreading."

One of his characteristic smiles broke over his face. "You're really making me feel like a heel for choosing something as cliché as Rei for someone as unbelievable as you."

She smiled back. "If 'twill soothe your conscience, allow me to say I quite like it. To be called beautiful in my very name is wonderful. I shall strive to live up to it."

"I'm sure you will." Clapping his hands together, the young man returned to his feet. "I think we've spent enough time talking now, don't you? Let's get this show on the road!"

Her smile widened. "It is agreed. Since your skill over water was dominant the eve past, I restrict you to your illusions to incapacitate your prey on this night."

The color drained from his face, but he squared his jaw and nodded. There was no improvement without restriction. This was necessary.

…

When he was human, being alone in the dark in a place such as Paradise would have had him jumping at his own shadow. Of course, that would have implied he could see his shadow, and right then that wasn't possible. It was almost completely pitch black since it was overcast above, blocking the light of whichever stars the strange realm might have been privy to. As he walked deeper and deeper into the wilderness, he wondered vaguely if he should be more intimidated of his task than he currently was. Rei had been right. Though his heart rate was higher than it normally would have been, he wasn't afraid. Maybe had his sight been the only thing he could rely on he might have been, with a sonar-like Youki detector built into his very being he wasn't at all.

Some part of him did indeed revel in the darkness surrounding him, just as Rei had suggested. It was like his eyes were made to see in the inky vastness. If his blood gave her as much of an insight into him as he thought it did, it wasn't very surprising that she knew more about his self as a vampire than he did. She was much more suited to unravel the mysteries tied into vague instincts than he was. If not for his enhanced abilities, he still thought himself human. It was strange. Time and again he had sworn he understood what he was and what he wasn't, yet the only difference between vampires and humans were their powers and life-spans. In the end, it all came down to choice.

Did he have it in him to abandon what was left of his humanity? To that extent, what _was_ left of his humanity? He was the same as he had always been; a bit more backbone maybe, but having strength like a vampire's tended to add to the confidence level. Even humans hunted when they were hungry, it had been how they had survived before they domesticated animals, built farms and raised their own cattle to sustain their existence. Was being a vampire really so different?

He was lying to himself. There was one thing different, one thing he had felt acutely as a Ghoul. Tapped into the most primal, deepest desires of the vampire race, he had come to understand one thing: a vampire's _fury_. Anger would do it injustice, _bloodlust_ was more appropriate. Being a creature that drank blood, one would think it meant merely a craving for the life-giving liquid that ran through every man, woman, and child on the earth. They would be wrong. He had little doubt that should a vampire want to, he or she could level a city and still not be satisfied with the amount of death and bloodshed. Fortunately, over time they had become a more sophisticated race, believing themselves—and possibly rightly so—above even the highest nobility in humanity. He would never wish a vampire's wrath on anyone, but he had seen it done a few times in the past. Alexander was lucky to escape with his life. He knew he wasn't above it either. If he didn't love Moka as much as he did he could have continued their fight, her challenge of dominance. Had he given in completely to the blind rage consuming him, demanding vengeance, he shuddered when he thought of what he could have done to her.

Rei understood that, so did Kokoa, so did his vampiric goddess, and so did the Chairman. They understood the survival instinct buried deep under his meek, kind heart. If he wanted to command the fear he knew he would need to stand up to the vampire suitors and whatnot that would doubtlessly come for his family, he needed to be able to control that instinct, just like he had done as a Ghoul. Every time Rei set a goal out for him here, that was what he knew she was aiming for. She wanted to see him _fight_, really _fight_. That was the true reason he was in Paradise. Down under everything he would learn and needed to learn, the possibility of that happening was why he was here. Moka could, and had, evoked something very similar in the past, but he refused to rise to that again. Never to her, never to his family.

But Tsukune Aono did understand that he _would_ need to, eventually. To face down what he needed to for them in his current state, he needed that extra edge.

Regrettably, he forgot that he wasn't the only predator that could be nocturnal, nor had he taken into consideration that his radar worked best when the Youki in question was agitated. It probably should have been noticed that he didn't give off the same feeling of power as he did when he was unsealed, so technically he was nothing but a walking meal to those others that could sense Youki. He also never once thought that years of surviving had given some monsters the insight to hide their presence until the last available moment. He should have.

The attack came from nowhere, with even less warning than the Kamaitachi strike of the day before. How such a large creature had managed to sneak up on him he would never know, but the fist that smashed into his side was nearly as big as his torso. Sent flying away and rolling painfully to a stop, he launched himself back to his feet in a show of acrobatic prowess Moka would have been proud of. Though his lungs burned with every breath he took he couldn't afford to not be ready for any ensuing strikes, plus he needed to see what it was that attacked him. He gulped when he saw the massive creature lurk towards him, almost deathly silent through the foliage. One hundred beady eyes looked back at him, each focused with perfect clarity on him from every imaginable part of its body. Gender was impossible to discern but that didn't matter, it likely didn't even have one. This was a monster made for the night, and for some reason or another it had chosen to attack hm. He had taken worse hits before, but only from some of the highest class monsters he knew. This thing's strength was not to be trifled with.

He hadn't expected Rei to be by his side in an instant, snarling in a most inhuman way despite her appearance. "Rei-chan!"

She didn't look away from the monster still staring at them with its centennial stare, halted momentarily by the new presence. "I apologize, Tsukki. I realize I had given my word not to interfere unless I deemed it necessary, consider this one such situation. If I had realized we were venturing into the grounds of the Hyakume I would have changed our course long ago."

"I thought you said this was your domain!" he whispered back.

"Do not question that!" she snarled. "Were I to assume my true form 'twould be nothing before me! Even now I could rend it limb from limb should I wish! 'Twould also wake the whole of the forest and nullify what I am trying to teach you! I fear I may have little choice in the matter, 'tis all but impossible to escape its grasp once envisioned in its gaze…"

He knew what he needed to do.

"Rei-chan…step back." He could have sworn he saw her dark skin pale at the command, even in the dead of night.

"Tsukki, please, I implore you, there will be plenty of opportunity in the coming days to test your—!"

"Rei-chan," he interrupted authoritatively, now meeting every one of those eyes looking at him with a hard stare of his own.

She whined indecisively, torn in the decision, and eventually nodded her consent. "You are either a brave soul or a very stupid man, but I will support you. Make no mistake: should I believe your life in peril at any time I will not hesitate to intervene."

His honey-brown eyes twinkled dangerously, and for a moment she thought she saw red pass over his irises. "Just call me stupid then. Here I go!"

Breaking into a reckless charge, he felt it rising, just as it had been ever since he laid eyes on the beast…just as it had in every battle he had ever fought with vampire blood flowing through his veins. The urge to main, to hurt, to _kill_ any who dared oppose his might. He recognized Moka's pride as something born from both nature and nurture: her father's contempt and her blood's instinctual sense of superiority. A humble person in the core of his being, not even a Super Vampire's pride could destroy his sense of self, not unless it wasn't technically him anymore, like had been the case when the blood destroyed his once human body and consciousness. Since he only had one out of her two, he had never had much trouble blocking it out anyway. The Holy Lock had done it for the most part when he was still a Ghoul, but with his power restrained only by the rosary around his neck he was left to deal with the full effects of what had become _his_ nature.

He was a vampire, and he wasn't about to let a fantastical reject such as what was barreling down it's fist at him defeat him, not when he had so many more challenges he needed to face, every one more difficult than this. Ready now, his keen eyesight was focused, the surrounding darkness nothing to his vampiric eyes. If he had been unencumbered by the Rosario, he would have been able to see even better, all of his senses would have been better for that matter. He would make do, he had to.

The hulking behemoth of eyes and muscle was no match for his preternatural reflexes. He was already moving by the time he had the trajectory of the incoming movements in mind. While faster than a human, the giant's body betrayed everything in its motions, leaving Tsukune's trained mind ample time to plot a course of action. He was faster than it; he could see it moving as if in slow motion. Pushing his momentum, he dove under the approaching fist, rolling up into a launch position with both feet set and springing his entire weight and speed into the monster a good three feet taller than him. The Hyakume—though nearly three times as wide as him as well—was no match for the combination and was sent tumbling to the ground with the sealed vampire on top. The squelch of eye tissue giving way with the muscle of its chest as he crashed into it turned his stomach, and he suspected had the beast had a mouth it would have cried out in pain. It made its discomfort plenty obvious in other ways, flailing its limbs manically in an effort to remove the source of its hurt and displaying more than a pinch of the hysterical rage the pain had brought on. Tsukune was sent flying when one arm finally connected, smashing him violently against one of the trees behind him and garnering a hoarse cough as he heard a restrained growl from off to the side. She stayed back however, just as he had requested.

_Thank you, Rei-chan,_ he thought seriously as he wiped the spittle from his mouth. With a growl of his own he threw himself back into the fray, agilely dodging every one of the mammoth blows sent his way and returning them with force. More eyes swelled closed under his assault, collateral damage to the true target areas of the body they wouldn't have been at on most any other monster. The Hyakume's muscles bulged and trembled in rage with every new hit, more than adequately expressing its fury and pain at the same time despite its lack of a mouth. Tsukune was winning just on the fact that the creature had so many more weak spots than he did, but he wouldn't want the thing to get a grip on him any time soon. If that were to happen he would be nothing but ground beef. Unsealed he would be able to break every one of the fiend's fingers with a pass of his hand, sealed he was a casserole waiting to happen.

It was a good thing he wasn't as restrained as Moka when it came to their abilities. Moving past another hasty attack, he bounced back in an effort to make distance. He was strong sealed, but not strong enough to make such a giant feel the effect unless it was in an already weakened zone. There were plenty of those available but it was becoming harder and harder to stay within range with the creature as infuriated as it already was. It didn't need to be accurate—though its remaining eyes kept it amazingly adept at that—it just needed to hit him, and its wild, swinging strikes that never let up for a second greatly increased the chances of that.

Sweat was pouring from his body now, his shirt nothing but a hindrance to his range of motion, so, sensing an opportunity, Tsukune shucked the wet cloth. Ducking under another punch set to decapitate him, he threw the discarded garment at his foe, temporarily distracting the focus of all those eyes. When one of its hands moved to defend and slap away the shirt, Tsukune was able to gain the speed he needed, jumping into a full drop-kick right to what resembled a torso. On any other thing that would have resulted in a bout of coughing and retching, for the Hyakume not a sound was made but for Tsukune's heavy breathing and the impact of its giant body falling to the ground.

The former human picked himself up while dusting off the various dirt and foliage that clung to his damp skin, smirking victoriously. From his Familiar's hackles-raised presentation the second the creature was in sight, he had expected something a bit…more.

"Tsukki!"

That warning was all he had the time to hear before a huge hand enclosed on his arm. Adrenaline burst through him, aided by panic as he tried to pull free, but the grip squeezed and left him with nothing to do but grit his teeth and try to stem the scream as he felt the bones in his forearm snap. The rage came back, stronger than ever, infuriated over this new complication, and it rose to heights higher than even that when he suddenly began to feel…weaker. The vaguely humanoid monster was returning to its feet, steadier than it should have been, and Tsukune himself felt one with the rage when he realized what was happening, what the Hyakume was capable of.

_It's…it's draining my strength!_

As he was, he let that rage fill him, grant him the extra power he needed. If his opponent was nothing but a predator focused on his destruction, he would fight fire with fire. A snarl worthy of a vampire broke from between lips baring fully extended fangs, and the entire area was abruptly covered in frost as the moisture in the air reacted and solidified. Spines of ice shot from the ground and stabbed into the offending appendage holding him in place, instantly freeing him, and Tsukune whirled himself around, training his good arm with deadly accuracy at his foe's gut. Caught between the reactions of guarding its newly-acquired wounds and defending itself, it gave no resistance in time for the blow. The echo of the collision exploded through the silent forest, rustling animals from their slumber and sending birds screeching into the air.

Far from done but still handicapped, the sealed vampire put the kicking techniques his silver-haired lover had taught him to good use, slamming blow after blow into the eyes he could see, intent on delivering as much pain as he could. He was a being possessed, but with full awareness of everything he was doing. He _wanted_ to do it. The monster could only fall back under his assault and try desperately to protect itself, doing so with attacks of its own that were easily hampered and then aborted completely by rods of ice forming without warning in their path. A lucky break caught by the creature found Tsukune once again in its hold, this time encompassed totally in its large hand, and he coughed blood when the creature squeezed, taking more of his energy and leaving him in more pain than he had been before while it was able to recover.

That rage condensed, forged itself into something Tsukune was unfamiliar with. Hatred. Still coughing blood, weak, and riddled by pain, he stared down the many eyes looking back at him with an unbreakable, unrelenting determination. "This power isn't originally mine," he began lowly, his words spat with malice, "but I made it mine. I promised I would use it to protect the ones I love, my humanity be damned to the lowest level of hell. It's mine to give away, my blood to my mate, my energy to another, and anyone else I see fit. If I could share it with all of them I would, they have that right. I will _not_ allow you to take what isn't yours. It was given to _me_; one of the most precious gifts I've ever been offered. It. Is. Not. Yours."

All the pain he had ever gone through, every slice of morphed limb into his flesh, blunt fists, hard feet, bullets, fangs, and even the abyssal torment of Moka's initial rejection, he focused all of that in his mind and set it loose upon the one creature with no chance in the world of escaping its penetrating enchantment. He had done it once before, knew he was capable of it again. At the shopping arcade he had glared at the monster and shown him what he would do to him had he touched Kurumu again, and he had fainted instantly because of it. The Hyakume had no mouth with which to sound its pain, but the expression in every one of its eyes did more than that ever could. Blood fell like tears as the eyes fluttered and convulsed erratically, its muscles following suit, before ultimately it collapsed to the ground in a heap, motionless.

Tsukune breathed a sigh of relief and spit another globule of blood from his mouth. "I didn't kill you. I know you're only doing what you know you need to to survive, so I would never hold it against you. You _did_ pick the wrong prey this time though…and I'm going to take back what you stole."

Baring his fangs, he did just that, replenishing his supply and sating his thirst in unison. The beast was large enough that it would still be strong enough to recover, but it wouldn't have the taste of his energy. The blood did little to quell the pain burning from his broken arm but at least it would aid in the healing. He had effectively screwed any chance of physical confrontation for the next few days with that injury, and his ribs protested every breath he took. He would have fallen over had he not known how much that would hurt his aching body, so he slumped against a tree, smiling when he saw Rei walk into his vision, restrained tears in her eyes.

"You are a fool. A magnificent, impressive fool, but a fool nonetheless," she stated factually, and he barked a laugh as his smile grew.

"You aren't the first one to say that," he replied with a grunt as he pushed himself into a more comfortable position with his good arm, its broken counterpart resting gingerly on his stomach. His Familiar eyed the injuries he had incurred with distaste, though at whom he wasn't sure. If she was anything like him, which he knew she was, she probably hated herself more than anything for letting him get the wounds than she did him for getting them. Determined to bite that before it became an obstacle to their relationship, he spoke before she could. "I knew the risks Rei-chan. I needed to do that without you."

"But why?" she questioned immediately, sorrow full in her steel irises, beautifully reflecting any light they captured.

He sighed softly and motioned for her to sit next to him. She did so heedless to the frost-covered surroundings and her sparse apparel, where she leaned against him comfortingly. "I was trying to fool myself, Rei-chan." Her eyebrows rose up in confusion, but he simply smiled his carefree smile at her and looked up to the cloudy night sky. "I said I didn't know much about being a vampire, the truth is I was just scared to face that part of myself again. When I became a Ghoul the thirst for flesh and blood terrified me. The thought that there was something in me…the thought that _I_…wanted to drink Moka's blood, it honestly scared me. When I fought I had power, but with that power came this…this desire to _end_ everything. I said I didn't understand my vampire nature, but really I probably understand it more than Moka does.

"If Vampires are naturally violent, a Ghoul is all their madness, their hate, and their basic urges for blood and…death…" it was whispered, so quiet she almost didn't hear it, but she understood what it meant, "…given a body. I still don't remember half the things I did when I was completely taken over, but as I grew into the Lock I began to realize those…desires…had become mine. It was _my_ blood, and I started to know that giving in without control meant I _would_ do those things, even if I was able to aim it. I had a choice to make every time I used my blood, to drown out the evil and protect life instead of destroying it. At the beginning, and even at the start of Second Year here, the Holy Lock did most of it, but that meant when I changed I didn't care, and usually ended up taken over by my instincts.

"When I truly made the blood mine was when I realized I had to stay who I am, no matter what my new blood made me feel. When I became a Vampire, I had gotten so used to suppressing those urges I really did just about not know what to do. I let it happen once, just once after I transformed, and I almost killed Mizore because of it. When Kurumu snapped me out of it and I saw her on the ground—God, she was so _pale_—I was still just floored by how much stronger my senses were, and each one was focused on her. I heard every weak beat of her heart, the short, uneven breaths she took; I could see almost every one of her veins against her skin I had taken so much of her blood. When I heard about some of the stuff I had done as a Ghoul, most of them were still to the people who had tried to hurt us. When I saw what _I_ had done just because I couldn't control myself and she was the nearest available source…I wanted to throw up. I almost _killed_ one of my best friends, someone I loved, because of my damned _instincts_."

Rei swallowed heavily, a lump of emotion thick in her throat as she watched the glitter of tears shine from the side of his face in the light of the moons breaking through the clouds. He swiped at his eyes and nose as his expression hardened, his teeth grit and jaw locked.

"When I was fighting that vampire that came for Moka, I had every intention of killing him. I had never been so angry in my life, not even when Moka almost killed me. I was outclassed in nearly every way and fighting for my life, but now I'm glad my rosary didn't come off. If it had come off and I was allowed to do what I wanted to to him, I think I might have given Moka's beating a run for its money, and that's only if I didn't actually kill him straight out. The thought that I'm _capable_ of that scares me, but it's that instinct that's kept me alive at the same time. I came here because I needed something the girls couldn't give me: another life-or-death scenario.

"I needed to know I could make that choice again, Rei-chan. I have the same bloodlust every other vampire has, and if it'll help me, I'm going to use it. I _will not_ lose myself to it, and I _will never_ endanger my family again. My choice has been made; I just needed to be sure I could stick to it."

She smiled, pride radiating from her being. "'Twould seem my objectives were misplaced. You are a harder taskmaster than I could ever fathom or hope to be. If ever again you wonder why a dragon would choose to partner itself with you, remember those words. I for one shall never forget them. A true hunter will kill to survive, never because he can."

He returned the gesture gratefully, though it was tainted with a glint of sadness she easily picked up on. "There's only one thing in this world that could make me kill, and I hope and pray every day that it never happens."

"Just one reason?" she asked with a raised brow.

"No, one _thing_," he responded tenderly, gracing her with that amazing smile of his again as he squeezed her hand. "Six _reasons_."

Clarity dawned, and dark cheeks brightened under the moonlight. "I…am considered one of your treasures?"

He nodded. "Since the moment you came into my life. If anything happened to Moka, Kurumu, Mizore, Yukari, Ruby, or you, I would turn heaven and earth to make the person who did it pay. I'm getting stronger so I won't ever have to do that."

Looking around the scene of destruction, her grin widened. "I believe you are well on your way to accomplishing that. You did disobey my restriction, yet with what you have achieved I find myself hard-pressed to discipline you." Biting into her wrist with her sharp teeth, she held the wound under his nose before it began closing. "My regeneration capabilities are far from yours, but as you know with your powers this will do much to aid it. Drink; it pains me to see your arm in such a state."

"I can guarantee it pains me more," he joked back. She would have hit him if she wasn't trying to heal the injuries he already had, not make more. He smirked under her glare and acquiesced, not about to anger her further. When he was done he did feel much better but he wasn't going to push his luck; the next day at the very least was going to be used doing the homework assigned over summer.

"I believe tonight has proven a success. We should return."

He agreed wholeheartedly.

…

The next two weeks passed by in a haze of barely cognizant shifts of night and day. He had no set schedule, and thus never knew whether he would be too awake to sleep when he knew he should, or too tired to be awake when he would have to regularly. His regimen was also never the same, well, all but the sparring and flying he and Rei did together to familiarize themselves with their partner. One day he was playing 'tag' with the Kamaitachi, the next he was forced to make illusionary trees subdue his next meal without him once physically _touching_ the animal. Rei's mind and imagination were something he was quickly learning to be afraid—_very_ afraid—of.

His arm healed in only a couple of days with Rei's steady offering of her blood, which gave him more than enough time to breeze through most of the worksheets he had to do. It was almost disconcerting how easily some of his classes had started coming to him after his transformation. Were Vampires really that smart when they were _born?_ He suddenly felt bad for the humans he had once been a part of.

As for Rei, her budding love of puzzles and the written word made her the perfect study companion—when she wasn't trying to beat the ever-loving crap out of him anyway. She picked up on things he had struggled with his whole life in the matter of minutes, at most hours if they were both truly stumped on the subject. Combining growing intelligence with her naturally wise demeanor and she was starting to seem older than him, though that was the farthest thing from the truth. Speaking of older, her body was changing as well, faster than he could have ever expected. When he woke up one night—or was that morning?—and Rei had suddenly gained a couple of inches on him, he was almost too shocked to speak. She looked easily older than Yukari, and the worst part of it was her body was actually developing likewise! It was nothing substantial; suffice it to say the shirt she regularly wore as a robe was losing ground. He had given her a spare pair of his boxers just in case. They fought often, and he didn't want to get a flash of something he shouldn't see when she pulled off one of her Moka-like kicks.

On the subject of clothes, he had simply forgone wearing shirts after most of what he had brought was shredded in his constant fights. His pants and shorts now all sported ragged edges from his many runs through the dense forest, and his shoes had suffered a rather unfortunate fate that left him to go barefoot. He couldn't complain actually, his feet were toughening under the strain, not counting a vampire's natural resistances. The fact that the Hyakume was even _able_ to break one of his bones showed its power, that, and how weak the rosary made him.

Staying clean however, that was another story altogether.

…

Four days in and Tsukune was really starting to get annoyed at the itch of his skin. Even raised in modern times, naturally any boy had gone without cleaning themselves for a while at a time. He on the other hand was used to being around many females on a regular basis, and _his_ cleanliness routine had always been a bit more regular than others. It was really starting to bug him that he couldn't wash himself, or even _try_ to get half the crud on his clothes off of them!

He had finally had enough; he couldn't take it anymore! He looked over his shoulder to where his Familiar was raptly reading his book from behind him, and in her full dragon form, it was quite a sight to see. "Rei-chan, do you know of any small bodies of water nearby? A small lake or something maybe? It needs to be able to hold my herbal tablets without being washed away by a current."

The wind came to life around him as her scaled mouth pursed thoughtfully. _'You wish to bathe then? Hmm, this was one matter not considered at length when your stay here was decided. You have the proper devices to ensure your safety?'_

"Yeah, I didn't want to come here without any of them. Just because I drink _blood_ doesn't mean I don't know how much I use water regularly," he responded with a grin, and her earthquake-like chuckle rumbled the area.

'_Sadly, I know not of any isolated pools that would fit your needs. As you have stated, the herbal additive would merely be diluted through the mass. Your tablets would be used for naught.'_

"Great, just freaking great." Eyeing the large expanse of her cave, large even by Youkai Academy's style of grandeur, and the hard granite floor, a smile stretched over his face.

'_That expression perturbs me,'_ Rei joked uneasily. _'What is going through that mind of yours?'_

"Have you ever thought about adding a pool?"

Realizing what he was getting at, her eyes widened. Normally the extra space in a dragon's cave was meant to hold the riches they acquire over their long lifespan, but then again she wasn't exactly the most normal dragon there had ever been. Besides, she could think of much worse things to do than go swimming with her partner. It would be a nice change. _'Where do you propose we acquire the water necessary for such a thing? Surely you are speaking of a larger basin and not merely a bath.'_

He just kept smiling at her. "You leave the water up to me. Digging a pool in a floor of solid rock is more what I'm worried about."

'_A test of control then. 'Tis about time I focused you on the mastery the icy maiden preferred to teach than the brute force required for incapacitation. 'Twill serve you well in the…how you say…long run.'_

Tsukune almost groaned. Leave it to her to think up another challenge for him off the top of her head. "What do you have in mind?"

'_Listen to the mountain, Tsukki, 'tis not as solid as it appears. Fissures ran rampant in parts; small, but there all the same. Find the space with what you need and command your ice to do the rest. Not all destruction need be done from the outside in.'_

Again he was floored by how much she knew. His sense of nature had expanded greatly with the continued intake of her blood, so when he let that awareness envelope him he saw the mountain through a new set of eyes. He ran his hand along the wall as he walked, feeling his sense expand beyond himself and into the makeup of the rock around him. It would be best to make the hole away from where they usually slept and exercised, so that gave him specific areas he had to choose from, and not all of them fit the bill. He stopped short when he felt what he was looking for, amazed that he could do it as easily as Rei suggested. If he simply let himself listen, it was astounding what he could hear.

Kneeling down and putting his hands on the floor, combining his two senses proved more difficult. He needed to feel every crack and expand his ice into them, aggravate an already destabilized area. It would hold, no doubt about that, but he didn't want it to. Pushing his ability down, the floor frosted over as the water inside started freezing and pushing outwards. The ground trembled as he forced the ice to grow and restrict it to a certain space simultaneously, and ultimately it buckled and shattered, leaving nothing but large chunks of stone in an otherwise large hole.

Flopping to his butt, Tsukune panted and wiped the sweat from his forehead. "I can't believe I just did that."

'_You did very well. The snow priestess would be pleased,'_ Rei complimented instead as she looked over his handiwork. With a few swipes of her giant paws the stone was cleared, and a jagged, uneven floor came into view.

The former human looked over the large opening's floor and winced. "Ouch, that looks like it could hurt."

Rei grunted in amusement. _'We are not yet finished. The stone needs to be sealed, does it not? I shall take care of both. I would recommend you stand back.'_

It only took her intake of air to know what she was about to do. Jumping back as fast as he could, he watched as his Familiar's magical fire poured into the slightly deformed hole, stopping only to take the occasional breath and turning the innards to malleable magma and the surrounding stone red hot. When she was satisfied, she straightened smugly. _'There, 'tis done.'_

Since he couldn't get close enough to see otherwise the hot stone would make short work of his skin, he decided to voice his opinions from afar. "Can you get it slanted up a bit to one side so it's shallower than the other? We'll make it like a real pool!"

Shrugging, he could feel the dragon's influence in the atmosphere around him as she directed the rock. She made dominance over nature look _simple_. _''Tis finished, Tsukki. All that remains is for you to cool down the rock.'_

Knowing instantly freezing it could result in many more cracks, he sent an extended burst of snowy air in front of him. He could practically hear it harden in place, and when he was able to look over the new pool they had made, he whistled. "We should go into the landscaping business."

The silvery dragon chortled beside him.

The water was easy enough to get. He just froze the entire inside of the space and let his partner melt it, which also took care of the heating problem. With a drop of the required tablets, he could hardly contain himself. Running up with untold glee, he jumped with a cry of, "Cannonball!"

He had never known how much he missed swimming until he hit the overgrown bathtub, pants and all. Splashing around happily, he knew he had found the perfect way to relax after a long day. Hell, if he had Rei turn up the heat they could turn the entire thing into a hot tub instead of a pool!

"Rei-chan, you have to try this!"

The dark shadow that cast over him made him pale as he saw the large reptilian form jump above, and he scrambled for safety as she too cried, _'Cannonball!'_

A small splash greeted him on her entrance, and he looked back cautiously just in case she had accidentally killed him and he was in the afterlife already. A dark-skinned girl looked back at him, her white hair pasted to her head and her grey eyes gleaming with delight as she laughed. "You should have seen the look on your face! Priceless, truly priceless!"

He had to wonder where she got her sense of humor.

He didn't need to wonder what she was wearing, because he quickly ran out to get her something, glad the water had obscured her image.

That would be just _wrong_, at least for now.

…

Tsukune chuckled as he thought of the memory, coincidentally floating around in the pool they had made that day. His body hurt something fierce and this was the best way to ease the pain. Rei was paddling around as carefree as ever in her makeshift swimsuit, which consisted of the pair of boxers she had been given and a darker shirt, though she looked significantly different than she had back then.

"I wonder what the girls are up to right now?" he wondered aloud.

Rei looked over at the mouth of the cave, where the darkness of night blanketed the realm beyond. The effect the water had on the roof of her home as it glittered and waved in the meager light the torches they had made provided them with was beautiful, and she resumed following the unknowable patterns with her eyes. "'Tis night, so I would assume they sleep."

He laughed again. "Yeah. Just because its night doesn't mean _we're_ asleep though, huh? I'm going to be so screwed up when school starts again."

"But you will be stronger," his Familiar insisted proudly, and he clenched his fist above his head tightly.

"You're right about that."

…

Far away in another realm, a lithe figure set down in front of an imposing door with wings that vanished upon landing. A staff set with a stone was waved in front of the door and it glimmered before cracking open.

Ruby Toujou smiled as she stepped into Paradise.

She did have something to give her Tsukune, and she would not be denied.

…

**Author's Notes:** I just kept on writing, and wow, another huge chapter came out. I refuse to be one of those authors that only post two-thousand and some word chapters unless they're oneshots, but usually I hold myself to a minimum of ten pages, not twenty-seven! Yeesh, I don't think I've posted a single chapter under eight-thousand words this entire story, LOL! Oh well, the feedback makes it worth it, and it gives you more to read! Win-win I say, LOL!

I thought of including Ruby's part in this chapter, but by the time I was done it just wasn't going to happen. It'll fit better next chapter anyways. Magic commences in more than one way!

I'd like to thank everyone that takes the time to review my stuff, you don't know how much I appreciate you all, and all those that favorite and alert it too. I write for you…and of course my own enjoyment, LOL! It always makes the cake sweeter when you're not the only one enjoying it though, simple as that.

Thanks again everyone, and I hope you enjoyed the chapter. More plot to come!


	16. To Love A Witch

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Rosario+Vampire, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story. Simple enough, ne? Just don't copy from this story and we're all good!

**Warning:** Yes, this chapter does have lemon. Just thought I'd let you all know. Enjoy! (LOL)

…

**To Love A Witch**

…

_Far away in another realm, a lithe figure set down in front of an imposing door with wings that vanished upon landing. A staff set with a stone was waved in front of the door and it glimmered before cracking open._

_Ruby Toujou smiled as she stepped into Paradise._

_She did have something to give her Tsukune, and she would not be denied._

…

It was always nice to come back to Paradise. Despite everything that could, would, and _had_ gone wrong in the past, seeing nature thrive undaunted always brought peace to her heart. At that moment it was a rather funny prospect, since the way said muscle was pounding suggested anything other than _peace_. Some part of her couldn't believe she had actually done it. She had stolen away in the darkness of night as soon as her friends had all fallen asleep—which may or may not have been helped along by the sleeping potion she _might_ have included in their nightly snacks. They were all tired anyway from the hard days of training, she had merely assured them all one of the most restful nights of their lives. The energizing concoction she had placed in her own had been a baffling mistake on her part.

There was that, or her patience had finally broken and she had taken every precaution necessary to ensure not only would she not get caught, but that Tsukune could properly ravage her just like she had always wished him to.

It was one of those. Which one might be hard to tell.

Of course, she wasn't going without real motive as well. If one thing lead to another though…she certainly wasn't going to stop anything. Ever since she had first seen his ability manifest she had had an inkling of what form his magic had taken, and more importantly, how she could help him understand it. She was more than happy to carry out her lesson plans. In the vastness of Paradise, looking for the sealed vampire would be like searching for the needle in the proverbial haystack. Luckily for her, his dragon companion on the other hand would be simple for her to find. The monster was tied to nature just as intricately, if not more so, than she was as a witch. All it took was one question to the humbling existence around her to point her in the right direction. Imagine her surprise when it pointed to a lesser power by that one as well, which could only mean one thing. She _could_ sense Tsukune, and that meant his ties had grown even stronger over his time in the protected realm.

On the wings of a dark angel she took flight, soaring unimpeded through the syrupy night of Paradise. The realm welcomed her with open arms—and hidden fangs, as she had come to find out the first time she had stayed with Tsukune. Nocturnal creatures sang into oblivion, content to fill the quiet of the diverse landscape with the calm of knowing all was well. If that song were to be interrupted it meant the presence of a predator, something not well received by those singing. It was the purest form of warning there was in the world. Fearing that which went bump in the night was easier than that which _didn't_.

Safe among the clouds, the witch saw her destination as heard by the submission of nature to a creature worthy of its respect. The shadowy peaks of the mountain-range loomed over her even from her place in the air, yet there was no intimidation to be found. One tied to nature found solace in its embrace, glory in that so much larger than she. Bound to its energies and bearing will, a witch or wizard was allowed free reign to control what they could, restricted only by their own limits. When Tsukune awoke to his power he would be a force the likes of which would be hard to comprehend. She couldn't wait.

As she neared the large opening she could see flickering with the remnants of light from within, fear jumped up into her throat, a sudden uncertainty that almost dropped her right out of the sky. _Oh god, what am I doing!_ She screeched mentally. _Calm, just keep calm. You're going to see Tsukune; nothing you haven't done before!_ Chewing her lower lips between her teeth, she knew that wasn't true. _Okay, so maybe you've never snuck out to go see him while he's off…basically by himself…a whole two weeks before he's supposed to get back…in the middle of the night…. Aw, this isn't good, this isn't good at all!_

What possible explanation could she give him? Training might work, but then she would have to explain why she came when any sane person would be sleeping. Who even knew if _he_ wasn't actually sleeping! She had to admit, that might not be so bad a possibility. She had watched him sleep once before; it certainly wouldn't be something she would be opposed to seeing again. Thinking of his reactions if he woke up sent tingles of another sort through her, but that was just her masochistic side acting up. Arousal and indecision battled inside her, warring for what was right in front of her. She had come so far, goals of both wicked and righteous intentions in mind, only to be stopped by something as petty as fear right outside his very doorstep.

Being older by the little she was didn't stop her from being human. She knew what she wanted, knew it could be hers, but could she get up the strength to make that final step?

She would never know.

Things hard and warm wrapped around her waist just as sharp fangs teased the back of her neck.

…

Tsukune had been floating limply in he and his familiar's exclusive pool when the wind shifted outside, sending in mild traces of sunflowers and incense in its wake. Only one thing had ever smelled like that. He breathed the scent in longingly, momentarily sidetracked by the memories they evoked. His training had taken him over a good deal of Paradise, and never once had he found sunflowers. The thought came that his mind was playing tricks on him. The only other time he had spent so long away from his family, his new family, was when the school was being reconstructed. Now he could smell the aroma of his guardian witch in the bowels of a monster's paradise. He chuckled.

"I know I've lost all concept of time since we got here, but it hasn't been a month yet, has it, Rei-chan? I could swear I smelled a hint of Ruby just now…" he asked rhetorically, not really expecting an answer as he cracked an eye open to look at her.

She had gone still in the water, now sniffing the air purposefully. "You did indeed, Tsukki. The mage waits at the front of our home. 'Tis dangerous, even for one such as her."

Lifting himself from the water, Tsukune growled low in his throat. He'd be damned before he let any one of his family get hurt, her reason for being there temporarily set aside. Shaking off what he could and drying what he couldn't, the sealed vampire was close to the entrance of the cave when he identified an all too familiar musk. His blood boiled. Training nonstop for however long he had did nothing to quench his more carnal desires, and he could smell that particular desire roiling off the older woman outside in spades. There was no way he was letting that get the better of him; ever since his senses had expanded he had suffered through the days where his friends forgot there was little that could escape him if he actually tried—and understood what it was—especially as a vampire. Playing the part of the predator as he had been doing, a sly smirk wormed over his lips as an idea came to him.

He had long learned how to stay silent, forced to become skilled at how to move in the shadows that embraced him like a mother would her child. If Kurumu was a Nightwalker, he had become a Night_stalker_. While disconcerting at first, he had grown to thrive in the cover offered by the darkness. The easiest way to catch prey was if they didn't know they were being watched, simple as that. There had been many painful experiences leading up to his newfound prowess in the dark, but in this case the ends did undeniably justify the means. The only problems he had in hunting anymore was wondering what he should drink that day, even _during_ the day. He had become a predator laudable even in Paradise, all that remained was continuing to fine-tune his various and ever-expanding skills—which was to say he still had over ninety percent of his original problem left to tackle.

She didn't even see him when he crept out of the cave, though she had been staring at it the entire time. Her attention was divided between something unseen and nervously clutching the small satchel she carried with her wand, oblivious to anything else. It was not a bearing that would serve her well where she was, he had thought she would have known that by now. He was only thankful the Kamaitachi slept like any other creature; he had no desire to face them again so soon after his last bout of 'tag'. Leniency wouldn't be something he would have given them either had they attacked her, but he didn't really want to hurt them too badly at the same time. They weren't exactly enemies as it were, and he didn't want to give them any thought to the contrary. It was a fortunate turn of events that could see their would-be prey placed under his and Rei's protection before day broke.

Slipping through the shades of obscurity all around them, he couldn't help but be pleased with himself when he was able to stealth right behind her with her none the wiser to his being there. Wrapping his arms around her waist, he reveled in her scent, tauntingly drawing his fangs across the oh-so-soft flesh of her neck.

"You shouldn't be standing outside in the middle of Paradise. Some monsters would see an easy meal," he whispered, his voice low and teasing.

Was it wrong for her to be more aroused than she had ever been around him? The spike of fear and threat of pain had had her readying a spell, but only for the first fraction of a second. It passed when a voice ingrained in her heart had flowed like dark velvet through her ears, instantly tuning her in to the identity of her 'attacker'…and sending her masochistic fantasies into hyperdrive. Pain by itself was not what any true masochist took pleasure in, it was the pain inflicted by someone else they thrived on. True, the most extreme _could_ take delight in pain delivered upon them even if they were _really_ being attacked, but for her, it had to be someone she loved and trusted. Having someone that fit both credentials currently threaten her—while obviously a joke—was still more than enough to send her heart-rate skyrocketing.

She leaned backwards into him, making him straighten from his bent position and pressing her firm backside into his—wet?—pants in a deliberately goading manner. "I'm not easy, but I definitely wouldn't object if certain vampire wanted to eat me," she replied graciously, masking the blatant lust inherent in the words.

Predictably, Tsukune reddened regardless. He couldn't be bothered to stop holding her though, it felt too nice to do something as stupid as stop. "What are you doing here, Ruby? I don't really have a good sense of time right about now but I do know that long hasn't passed yet."

She sighed deeply as she slackened further into him, into the strong hold around her body. His hands were cupped together under her breasts, her arms over his, and honestly she just didn't want that moment to end. "I have no idea why I'm here, Tsukune," she confessed in a small whisper. "I thought I did and I still froze right outside your door. To go with the planned truth: I want to help you with your magic while you still have time left here."

"And the real truth?" he croaked, though his dry mouth told of his suspicions.

"I just wanted to be with you."

He smiled, tightening his grip around her and placing his chin on her shoulder, where his hot breath crashed against the skin of her neck. "Abusing your power as aide now, are we?"

A shiver that she knew wouldn't go unnoticed rocked through her, and she strangled a moan in her throat. If any changes weren't noticeable before, when he had snuck up on her like it was nothing, his new confidence was even more palpable than that. He was actually teasing her back!

"There has to be _some_ perks to the job," she responded in a low, intentional murmur. Her tone was one octave away from sin itself, and God help him his body couldn't resist reacting to her advances. Her lips called to him as she licked them, out of nervousness or because she knew he was looking he didn't know. The fleeting wonder of why they hadn't done this before came to him unexpectedly, but that was answered easily when he thought of how busy she always was. It had been hard enough to spend what little time they could with each other before he had transformed, after even more so. Now they were completely alone, and a new scent was being added to her already intoxicating mix of sunflowers and incense: lust.

"I'm going to kiss you now," said his breathless voice as he moved closer to do just that. Another shiver came over her as their lips met, his arms still held securely around her from behind. Maybe it was because he had spent so long immersing himself in his more predatory desires, or maybe it was knowing she had risked the headmaster's wrath—not to mention their friends'—by coming out to see him by herself, but he just needed to kiss her. The position didn't allow much force but that suited him just fine, softly nipping his lips over hers as she melted against him, pressing as much of herself as she could into his strong body. His groin was pressed mercilessly into the softness of her posterior as a result, inducing a heady groan from his chest as he pulled away. "Y-You…you said something about magic?"

A change of topic was needed, and desperately. There were no beds to speak of in the entire realm, and the only blanket—his—was currently in a cave housing the only other sentient creature he knew of besides them. It should have occurred to him that to the woman he was holding, absolutely none of that mattered. Her grin was not unlike those of the more feline carnivores he had faced during Rei's training, that of a gleeful huntress. Turning into him, she stared up into his eyes with her cheeks a rosy shade of red, suddenly aware of his lack of clothing when she got an eyeful of hardened muscle instead of a shirt when she spun around.

"I did," she answered coyly as she dropped what was in her hands and dragged her fingernails over the expanse of flesh before her, too tempting to resist. "This works just fine for what I had in mind."

Cursing under his breath, Tsukune hissed a growl as her fingers ignited the other part of the nature deep in his blood. "How…does this have to do with…magic…?"

Ruby was entranced as his muscles twitched under her touch, the silver rosary unblemished between his powerful pectorals. Her womanhood moistened, seeing his fangs in full view as he panted soft breaths, his eyes devouring her greedily just like the hunters he had warned her of. The way the bands of sinew were tightening under her care showed she was succeeding in arousing him, and she was now able to recognize the motions as that of one holding back from doing something. It was a trait she had seen Mizore and Kurumu use often to keep from instinctively responding to some of the blows set against them in sparring. She set her vampire with a sultry grin at the question and did the unanticipated, abruptly halting her trail over his chest to fling the ties from her ebony hair. Bereft of the ponytails, the inky locks fell like sheets of silk down the sides of her shapely face.

Tsukune Aono stopped breathing.

"I could be trite and say that this _is_ magic," she began as her sensual grin widened ever so slightly. "But I'm talking about _real_ magic." Pushing a finger against his chest, the former human offered no resistance in his shock, numbly stepping back under her direction until he was stopped by the nearest tree. She slid him down to sit, careful to avoid the coarse bark, and fearlessly dropped into his lap. From his position the moons shone behind her head, setting her profile into a glow of white starlight as she looked down on him and fitted her hands into his. Her coral eyes positively glowed as she lifted those hands to caress her face, never once leaving his as she held them there. "Real magic is a connection that only some things have to the energies in nature. This energy is a witch's power; our unique relationship between monsters and humans is our strength. With a magical focus we can harness this energy flowing through us, direct it however we want. We can coerce flora to bend to our will, speak with fauna and have them fight for us. We can imbue that energy in soulless objects and take control of them, or summon them from nothing by warping that energy. We can distort reality and do things human _and_ monsters would have trouble dreaming of, and cast spells that put mass destruction to shame. We can even take that energy directly and release it unfocused; that one sound familiar?"

He nodded silently.

"You're a vampire, Tsukune. You share a connection none of us have, one of _blood_. What is Youki but an energy released by an Ayashi's life? Vampires can sense that, it's one of their strengths. You have the human connection now too, the nature humanity came from. With your power you could influence storms, summon lightning from the heavens themselves! I'm a witch, Tsukune, I'm far from a weak human, but I will never have the strength of your body. I can augment my power with outside sources, use items filled with magic to prolong my casting time, and even train to channel more magic through me, but I _will_ have limitations. There are certain transformations that can sidestep that…but they come at a terrible cost. My former mistress used one." Sadness filled his eyes at the reminder of his failure, yet she only smiled lovingly. "Imagine what a vampire could do, tapped into the well of nature. You have a body made for magic, Tsukune. Feel me, feel the connection we share."

It felt like an order of great intimacy, almost as if she had just asked him to make love to her. It also felt much like what Rei had asked him to do when looking for fissures in rock, to simply expand the song of nature he could feel in his very bones. Concentrating on that, his eyes went wide when he felt, literally _felt_ Ruby under his hands. Her body sang with that ancient melody, a soloist amongst the choir of the forest surrounding them. He could feel her Youki, the pulse of demonic energy that marked the tie she had to monsters everywhere, but stronger still he felt her _sing_ with an energy he could see was all around them.

Looking into those fuchsia orbs, he knew he would never be able to look at her the same way again. Monsters shunned witches and wizards because of their heritage, but he knew if they ever gained the ability to see them like he was seeing her now, they would see beings of unparalleled beauty. In the supposed weakness of their blood they had gained something no monster would ever be able to touch, a link to something larger and more primeval than even the oldest vampires could comprehend. It was a link he would never have had, but one he shared now, bought through the blood of a witch and a dragon.

"Was I…I…I shouldn't be able to see this. I…feel like I've stolen this from you. This is your right, not mine…" he rasped raggedly. He knew beauty, he was graced with its company almost every day in the form of women he knew he would never deserve. This didn't feel like mere beauty, this was something beyond his, or any other's ability to describe. It was what he had felt four times previously, each one just as breathtaking as the last; the complete _bareness_ that Inner and Outer Moka, as well as Kurumu and Mizore had presented him with as they offered their love to him, as he did his to them. Ruby sat on him fully clothed, yet he felt like he had just seen her soul.

And she just smiled. "You always gave me the choice whether or not to give you my blood, Tsukune. You stole nothing from me that I didn't freely give. This energy is what you can command now, just as I do. You have no idea how happy I am that I'm able to share this with you."

He had to kiss her. He had to. It wasn't light or tender, this was powerful and consuming, demanding and lustful. Ruby could only moan as Tsukune dominated her mouth, pressed her against him with hands trembling in need. She wasted no time in undoing the string of her choker, loosening her shirt as well as she could before Tsukune took over for her and pulled the garment over her head. Since the corset-like shirt also served as her bra, the sealed vampire was granted full view of her naked chest as she pulled the ripped nylons and belts from her arms.

_God, she's simply beautiful…_ It made him want her all the more, and by this point he had to have her.

They fell into each other with a wild abandon that had Ruby inwardly screaming in delight, relishing the harsh movements that just barely walked the fence between force and violence. He clawed at her skirt unsuccessfully as he tried to divide his focus between kissing and disrobing her, and the goal was only accomplished when Ruby parted from him, much to his displeasure. He quickly came to the conclusion that it was worth the time apart. Staring down on him, flushed and aroused, the half-naked witch shimmied out of her tattered skirt, leaving her only in a pair of barely noticeable undergarments that were just as quickly discarded.

"Holy hell…" he muttered in awe, drinking in the sight before him like he would see no other. Radiant under the night sky, his witch struck a picture as ethereal, as _sexual_ as anything he had ever seen. Eyes dark in lust there was no misinterpreting what she wanted, made all the more clear by the pungent scent in the air and the moisture running down her thighs. She gave him a come-hither motion he couldn't have responded to faster, and was soon pressed against another tree as she and her newfound lover returned to each other's arms. Her bare back was pressed painfully into the bark of the tree in doing so and she moaned deeply, more aroused by the pleasure of pain than pleasure alone.

"Please Tsukune, take me, make me yours! I've waited for so long, God please just give it to me!" she pleaded desperately, rubbing her achingly wet sex against the coarse material of his shredded, damp pants. All at once vines came from nowhere, wrapping her securely to the tree and halting those wonderfully gratifying motions in their tracks. She gasped brokenly as the shock rolled through her body in unspeakable satisfaction, her arousal mounting ever higher as her desires were played off of and brought to life in a reality better than any dream she had ever had. The rational part of her knew it had to be an illusion, but the masochistic side of her was too busy enjoying it to even _consider_ rationality. "Take me, hurt me, do anything! I _need_ you!"

Tsukune was panting, his arms held on either side of her head. He wanted to, oh Lord did he ever want to, but there was something in her voice, her demands, that had made him pause. Cupping her chin, he forced her still and kissed her. There was tenderness this time, apology, something deeper and more lasting than primal gratification. Confusion had replaced lust as the dominant emotion in her beautiful eyes, and with a gesture he had freed her from his mind magic. Taking hold of the naked flesh of her rear he lifted her against him, let her wrap her legs around his waist as he pressed her to the tree again and held her there, trapped by his body alone this time. Her eyes held the question on the tip of her tongue, but he cut her off.

"Ruby, I love you. I love you so much. I want you so bad I can hardly see straight…but I don't want to hurt you…" his voice cracked there, and she knew what his problem was. He had spent so long trying to keep them all from harm naturally he wouldn't want to be the one _inflicting_ it; she just needed to make him see her side.

"You don't get it, lover," she answered, pleased she would finally be able to use the title for him. "I love _everything_ you could do to me; pain _and_ pleasure. You can't hurt me, because the only thing I'll feel is _pleasure_." She scraped her nails down his chest again, hard enough to leave little red lines on his skin, and he shuddered as he stifled a moan between his lips. "Tell me, did that hurt?" As much as it embarrassed him, he shook his head. Grinning like the cat that caught the canary, she leaned forward and dug her blunt teeth into the crook of his neck, just hard enough to form an angry splotch of crimson on his tanned skin and earning another harsh groan from her vampire. "You're more like me than you realize. You don't need to break my bones or cut me deep; that's not what I like. Just give it to me _rough_, lover. Bite me, grope me, tie me up! Dig your fingers into my ass and pound into me like the vampire you are! I wouldn't let anyone else do this to me; you don't need to be my master, but as my lover you should know that this is what I _like_. There's a time for the soft and sensual, but please, _please_ I need you _now!_"

She watched his eyes change as a thought hit him, and before she could ask what it was her arms had been wrenched away from him and held firm above her head by vines she knew couldn't be real. It felt real enough, and try as she might to escape, she couldn't. Stepping away from her and leaving her tiptoeing against the tree, Tsukune smirked as he playfully replied, "No."

Her stomach tightened, and not in a bad way. "N-No?"

The smirk grew as he nodded. "No."

She had never known being denied something she wanted so badly could turn her on so much. Her legs trembled at the strain being put on them but under his gaze even that felt glorious. When he returned to her he nipped at her throat as he ran his hands down her taut abdomen, down so close to her dripping womanhood only to leave at the last second. A whimper escaped her as he alternated between kissing and biting down her chest, only using enough force that she could feel his fangs and leaving before they could puncture her skin and give her the pleasure that entailed. She squirmed, tried to fight the hold he had over her to no avail, and it was the single most erotic thing she had ever felt.

"I'm not going to give it to you like you want until I show you how much I love you. I'm going to kiss every part of your body; I'm going to touch you so softly you're going to wonder if I'm even touching you at all. I'm going to show you I love every little bit of you, Ruby Toujou, and there's nothing you can do about it."

The proclamation actually pushed her to a miniature climax.

Tsukune did everything he promised, worshipping inch after flawless inch of the mage's toned flesh. Fingers traced the contours of the muscles hidden under her skin with a reverent touch, where every so often his tongue followed. In the wake of his lips Ruby's whimpers intensified, yet the area she wanted attended was so purposefully ignored. With her hands restrained it was exactly as he said, she could do absolutely nothing about it. Minutes, hours, she couldn't tell how long he simply touched her, kissed her, drove her insane with wanton _lust._ She was all but sobbing as he trailed down one leg and up the next, his own arousal still disregarded and trapped inside his pants. She dared to hope when he straightened, once more looking her in the eye as his hand glided closer to her weeping sex. The touch that met her folds was ice cold, but not overly so, just enough to send a jolt through her inflamed petals and rip a scream of surprise from her mouth.

Her world was a spiral of paradoxes: knowing what she wanted and yet wanting to be denied more, feeling absolute need that was yet somehow fed by a near total lack of anything to her throbbing womanhood. He wasn't torturing her in the conventional sense, but he was indeed torturing her. She couldn't get enough. She wanted it to end, she wanted it to continue; she didn't know _what_ she wanted, she only knew she _wanted._

When the touch resumed his temperature was normal again, and she almost cried in relief when it slipped into her. She didn't know how much more of that her legs could take, the stress of supporting a body that otherwise thought vines were holding it in place was taking its toll, but she was so _close_. "More, please, _more_…"

He obliged her…slowly. Testing her wetness with another finger, gently, carefully he slid it too inside her. She bucked her hips as much as she could, physically demanding the digit further, to scratch the itch deeper. Once more he denied her, halting their progress the minute she tried anything. He knew what she wanted now and like she asked, he was giving it to her, just in his own way. If she had been able to focus on anything but the terrible need he had kindled in her she would have been impressed, as it was his prowess was the farthest thing from her mind. Obeying the unspoken command, she bit her lip and stopped, holding herself unmoving except for the occasional shudder of pleasure that was constantly flowing through her during the act. His fingers returned, stroking decisively, forcefully, signaling a change in pace she had waited far too long for. Curling inside her, her whole body arched when they hit a spot within that made her toes curl, sent her to the tips of her feet like a dancer as relief crashed through her with the finesse of a wrecking ball. The illusion shattered at that moment, leaving her to fall into his arms like so much dead weight as the waves of blissful respite washed over her.

Words were incapable of describing what she had just experienced, of what he had just done to her. Nothing had ever been that intense. Struggling to breathe and find her footing at the same time, she pushed her sweaty hair out of her eyes as she looked at him. He was clearly struggling to control himself too, though for a completely different reason. His skin was nearly as flushed as hers and the bulge in his pants was indisputable, but it was his eyes that turned her insides to jelly. Rusted gold burned brightly, his desires all made clear in those fierce irises. She would no longer need to _coerce_ him to do anything to her, she could see that with certainty. With a sly grin she undid his pants and pulled them to the ground with his boxers in tow, revealing at last what she wanted to see.

She found out then it _was_ possible for her to get more aroused. Humming her approval, she trailed back up, giving a lingering lick to the underside of his hard erection on the way. His breath hissed out of him, but she would show him he wasn't the only one that could tease. Leaving it at that she moved from him, setting herself back against the tree so she could lift one of her legs and show her excitement to him completely, held solidly in a pose that would make any male lose their sanity.

"Your turn, lover," the erotic witch purred seductively.

No more words were needed. He moved at her permission, meshing her stunning body against his in passion before embedding himself in her fully. She screamed in delight at the amazing mixture of pain and pleasure that assaulted her, the brilliant attack on her most sensitive nerves that lit her body in bliss and the singular pain of losing her virginity in the same stroke, which only heightened the pleasure to near unimaginable levels. It hurt, but it was so _good_. He hesitated there, knowing what he had done, but she wasn't about to let this one-time pain go to waste. Thrusting herself against him as hard as she could, she made his movements for him, pressing him ever deeper into her and milking the pain for all it was worth. Another hiss escaped him at the onslaught of her warm heat around him, and seeing that she clearly wasn't crying out in pain, Tsukune finally let himself go.

He had been holding back for so long. Watching her expression go through all manner of changes as he kissed and caressed her body was a test in patience, watching her orgasm so hard she collapsed against him was far more than even that. He wanted to put her needs before his, but it was so damn _hard_. The sounds she made were unbelievable; there was no pain in her voice, only mindless satisfaction bordering on the insane. Finally one with her, his needs were pushed to the forefront, not that she was demanding anything less. She was begging him for more, pleading for him to go faster, harder, and every time he did she tightened around him. If she wanted a predator, he would give her a predator.

Gripping tight to her amazingly sculpted backside, Tsukune pushed her hard into him, digging upwards as far as he could and elicited a scream that surely woke most of the forest. His need was frantic, _demonic_, and hers only seemed to grow under his increasingly violent strokes. Her back was being scraped ruthlessly into the tree bark now, but once again the pain had the opposite effect it would have on anyone else. Ruby Toujou was in heaven, pure heaven, plain and simple. Her body was on fire, her vision was fading in and out behind her eyelids as they squinted shut during particularly hard thrusts that made her scream and bite her nails into his back. Tsukune was focused only on her, on the pleasure their joining created, and he had never seen her so beautiful as when she was flushed and sweaty, wailing in sheer ecstasy and tightening her legs around him like she never wanted to let him go.

The urge to kiss her overpowered him, and she moaned readily into the embrace as they rocked together in carnal intimacy, her cries now muted by their locked lips. She honestly didn't know how many times she had lost it already, she had lost count after the third one almost made her black out. The combined stimuli of everything she loved was just too much for her to take, yet she still wanted _more_, and more importantly, she wanted him to reach that peak too. She urged him on in the breaks between their kisses, crying out for him to join her as she felt another massive wave approach. With a hoarse cry he did just that, but not before he had plunged his fangs deep into her neck as the line differentiating lust from bloodlust warped in the mindless euphoria of release.

They stood there, shuddering in each other's arms and gasping for air as everything blurred around them. Ruby was sure she had found a place past heaven and Tsukune was inclined to believe her, since he was there with her. As their heart-rates were finally allowed to slow, the vampire leaned heavily on his witch lover, their skin slick and wet. With calm souls and warm eyes they looked at each other, him petting back her lustrous raven hair and her winding her fingers into his dark chocolate strands, both still wonderfully ensnared in each other's bodies. It was like they had just made the most tender of love on the softest of beds, not practically assaulted each other against a tree in the middle of a forest.

"That was unbelievable," he muttered breathlessly, and she smiled as she rolled her hips into him again. His arousal hadn't waned in the least, and likewise she was practically drunk on all the wonderful feelings still running rampant through her body.

"And nothing you did hurt me, God, it made it so much _better!_" she crowed happily. "You won't be afraid to do that to me again next time, will you?" He stared at her incredulously, only causing her smile to widen as she shivering just from the memories of minutes before. "Wow though, you're right; that was amazing!" She was still kind of lightheaded, but his bite probably had something to do with that. If he had done that to the others…no wonder Moka had been so cranky at being denied before.

Then he was kissing her again, causing her to give the hints of a smile before she relinquished herself to it. Her eyes were almost closed when they caught a trace of white in the mouth of the otherwise colorless cave off to the side, and right then bright pink met polished steel. Tsukune gasped when her sex suddenly constricted around him harder than before, but Ruby paid it no mind, instead devouring his mouth fervently in newly-blazing desire. The thought that they had been _watched_ sent a whole new kind of arousal through her, one stemmed directly from her masochistic mindset. Those draconic eyes disappeared soon after realizing they had been spotted, but the damage, as it were, was already done.

It wasn't hard for him to recognize the look she set on him, because he knew he was giving it right back. It was the gaze of one not nearly done. He had to admit he was surprised when she pushed him away, thus letting her return to her own two feet and separating their intimate connection, but that was answered all too quickly when she turned around and bent over, presenting her perfect backside to him as she set her hands on the tree to balance herself. Her back was riddled with superficial pink scrapes obviously caused by the bark, but the prurient smile thrown over her shoulder showed she didn't even feel them. If she did they were only serving to heighten her pleasure, and as long as they were doing that he was happy to allow their existence.

He nearly choked when her hand trailed back, idly stroking the soaked flesh of her nether-regions as if to taunt him. The main reason for that was she had turned her attention upwards after figuring her fingers were wet enough, and before his very eyes one of her feminine fingertips disappearing inside the forbidden gap located there. Her resulting moan made all moisture vanish from his mouth, and he gulped heavily when she deemed herself ready, sinfully spreading herself before him without the slightest bit of shame.

"I've waited so long for this night to come," she moaned breathily as she studied him from behind half-lidded eyes. "I've dreamed of what we would do, over and _over_ and _over_ again. Fulfill another of my fantasies, would you, lover?"

A hundred things came to mind at once, not one of them negative. Even as hormone-driven as it was right then, his brain still needed to reboot after being shown that image. Heart pounding up in his throat, he hesitantly walked towards her, positioned perfectly with little difficulty at her request. She cooed lustfully when his arousal scraped her womanhood in a journey up, and whimpered when one of his hands closed over hers on the tree.

"When you put it that way I can't really say no, now can I?" he replied lowly as he leaned over her back, pressing forward just enough to hear her gasp in pleasure. She tried to move back in an effort to speed up the process, but his hands held her firm, which was exciting to her all the same.

"Tsukune…don't tease me…! Hard and fast, give me everything you've got!"

She was certainly prepared enough for it, and seeing as lust had taken over as the driving factor behind his actions again he felt no desire to deny her. Even with the wetness in place he still met resistance at first, but neither of them would allow themselves to be deprived of this experience. With a harsh jab forward he was sheathed in her completely, enveloped in a tightness so like and yet so alien from her sex. Wet and soft, the pressure was almost unbearable around him, not mentioning the gurgled cry of contentment that flew from his witch's mouth as he did so. Again he found he had no idea whether or not he was hurting her, but at that moment Tsukune had to admit he honestly didn't care. His brain had shut down, his body was in control, and hers only cried out louder because of it.

She was on fire, burning from the inside out in an inferno of sensation that gifted her with both opposites she longed for. Pleasure, pain, everything in-between, it was all there, all hitting her at once. It felt like the air in her lungs was torn from her every time they connected, forced through strained vocal chords into sounds drawn from the very depths of desire. She had wanted him for so long, having him agree to her fantasies was something she could have only dreamed about. He did what she wanted, but in his own way, never straying from the person she knew and loved. He bound her to a tree to force her patience, to let him love her and adhere to her wishes simultaneously. He made love to her passionately, with enough force to satisfy her more unusual demands yet hadn't lost sight of the intimacy the act entailed.

Now was no such time for contemplation, now they had utterly lost themselves in the carnality of lust. Taken from behind, Ruby barely resisted being smashed into the tree with each strong stroke, relishing in the feel of him within her and his powerful hands gripped firmly to her hips. She knew she would be carrying more than one mark from the encounter and that only aroused her further. He was hitting places inside of her that she had never thought possible, exciting hypersensitive areas that made her flinch in pleasure and scream for more. She was being stretched and filled and simply just _overwhelmed_, and she loved every magnificent second of it.

It was getting the better of Tsukune too, whom she heard gasp and moan as he strove to drive them both to completion. His husky, masculine baritone complimented her sharp groans of satisfaction in a song as old as nature itself, one of primal togetherness sought by every living thing on the planet. There were no identities in those moments, there was only them and the being they made as one. Pain, pleasure; lust, love; everything they were going through was coursing through their veins with the solitary goal of that final, explosive release they both wanted so badly.

To describe his state of mind would be impossible. All he could focus on her and what she was doing to him. His body was tightening in preparation for the inevitable, commanding his speed and force increase at her continued entreaty and he didn't know how much longer he would be able to hold off. Her legs were shaking with each one of his thrusts before ultimately they collapsed and she sat against him fully, allowing him to push her solidly to the tree and let no space be between them. His name was the only thing on her lips, hers the only thing on his; so consumed were they which each other when that peak came it caught them completely unaware, sending them into shivering spasms that locked them in place as they choked out one last cry of their lover's names.

With muscles that might as well have been rubber they fell to the ground, each clasped in a desperate hold to their partner's body as they rode out the effects together.

"Sweet lord almighty…" Ruby coughed as she fought to regain use of…everything.

High on post-coital bliss, Tsukune laughed as he ran a hand over her sweaty stomach while she lay limply on top of him. "This coming from a woman who works for a priest. Getting kinda blasphemous now, aren't you?"

Despite herself she broke out laughing as well, which shook her and proceeded to remind them _both_ they were still connected. Moaning again at the stimulation to her abused nerves, Ruby grinned while she entwined her fingers with the ones of his that were still traversing her trembling abdomen. "I'm a _witch_, not a _nun_. I could always dress up like one though, would you like that?"

The former human groaned lightly at that image as his sorceress squeezed him inside her, and he tightened his hold around her as he mocked a grimace. "I'll never be able to look at a nun the same way again."

Her laughter pealed like bells in the surrounding immensity of the forest. Separating herself from him, she rolled over so she could look into his eyes, meshing them chest to chest while she resumed running a hand through his wet hair. He was supporting her whole weight but he didn't make the slightest expression of discomfort, instead only returning the favor and caressing his hand down the side of her face lovingly. God how she loved this man. "A nun would take one look at you and regret that vow of chastity, so I'm sure the feeling is mutual."

Even after what they had just done, she saw he could still blush under the starlight. His look softened the longer they stayed in their embrace, silence now dominant, and Ruby smiled as she turned her head to his chest, his heartbeat a comforting harmony to the sounds of Paradise around them. She didn't know how long they stayed like that, just basking in the presence the other offered, but she knew she would never forget a single second. Finally, a deeper intake signaled something new, and his soft whisper carried to her ears. "Thank you, Ruby. I don't know why you came when you did or why, but thank you. I've missed you all so much, knowing this is the best way for me to get the strength to protect you is the only thing keeping me here."

She stood by her earlier sentiment. God how she loved this man. "You could always come back with me you know," she replied hopefully, though she knew in her heart what his answer would be.

"I can't do that, you know that. I'm getting stronger and I'm learning how to use my powers in real situations; I can't do that back at school. Rei-chan and I are learning how to move together, we're learning _about_ each other. We're far from perfect but the longer we have the better, and I'm trying to train her as best I can. She wasn't used to fighting in her human body and she's still learning, so we have a long way to go. We need this, Ruby; I can't leave now."

She sighed dramatically, not like she had expected anything different. "I know, Tsukune. Can't blame a girl for trying though, can you?"

He chuckled, and the witch shivered as the deep rumble in his chest vibrated into hers. "No, I don't suppose I can."

As much as she hated to leave his warmth, it was the perfect opportunity to present him with the other gift she had come to offer him. He let her go unquestioningly, more than content to watch her swaying backside as she sauntered over to where her wand stood stuck into the ground. Removing the small satchel hanging from the curve of its end, she returned, throwing her leg over his body smoothly before dropping to straddle him. Tsukune was already eyeing her with budding desire and his body was responding accordingly, much to her delight, but she still had to show him the contents. As he drank in her movements like the lover he was, she reached into the cloth bag and pulled out a small leather book, set with a gleaming crimson crystal in its center. Extending the object to her love, he took it hesitantly, marveling at the construction of the seemingly simply tome.

"What…is this?" he asked, almost afraid to know the answer. Expert, obviously hand-sewn stitches marked the edges of the dark brown leather, and strings of the same make held the book from opening randomly. It was hardly any bigger than a large wallet, the perfect size for something like his pocket, and it felt like it had been made for his hands. The dark jewel held in the middle thrummed with a familiar power, as if waiting for his command to unleash untold fury on the world, and it wasn't hard to figure out what it was. It was a magical focus.

"Your blood is filled with magic, Tsukune. I'm sure it would be an excellent conductor by itself, but I thought I'd give you a book of the basics to help you out. The focus crystal will be easier to use at first than trying to do what you've done before without one. It'll be good for you to learn your limits before Yukari and I start you on the more advanced stuff."

The vampire just looked at what he was holding, speechless. "But aren't focuses hard to find?"

Red tinged her cheeks. "That gem's a sister crystal to the one in my wand. Every once in a while the headmaster will reward me for my hard work, and I couldn't think of anything I'd rather do than give one to you. I made it myself, do you like it?"

He stared at her. "Ruby…this is incredible…I love it."

Her smile was positively breathtaking. "I thought it matched your real eyes really well, I guess the fact that it also matches my name was a stroke of luck."

Pushing himself up with his elbows, he was eventually able to hug her. "I'll treasure this, I promise."

She smirked smugly as she shifted herself on his lap, gaining a gasp from her lover and a tingle of her own. "Why don't you show me?"

The look he set on her made her gulp.

"It would be my pleasure."

…

Far away, high atop the tallest peak of her mountain home, a bronze-skinned teenager stared up at the moons. Her heart was in turmoil, her conscience just as much. She had known what her partner was doing the instant the first feminine shriek had caught her sensitive ears. The smell only gave it more credence, the pheromones the witch was exuding in her excitement. She knew she shouldn't, knew it was supposed to be private, but some part of her couldn't resist the temptation to look.

Oddly enough, Rei didn't feel bad about doing so. _That_ was what was weighing on her mind. The dragon ran her human hand through the shaggy spikes of hair atop her head as she sighed. _This is…ludicrous!_ She decided at last. _There is no reason for these feelings! Procreation is necessary, 'tis not something to be ashamed of!_

The act had never been strange to her; deep in her blood she knew the process of male and female copulation to be an essential aspect of birth, with the possible exception of a few animals—her endangered species among them. She had noticed many times that after her partner had fed from his prey they were left twitchy and restless, oftentimes scampering off to engage in that very activity. It was something needed for the perpetuation of life.

Her human body on the other hand, disagreed with the cold hard logic.

Warmth not at all from the fire ever-present in her body clawed at her belly, assaulted her with feelings she would rather not know. It occurred to her then that because of her transformation ability, she was going through something most unpleasant. It wasn't that she felt bad for spying on them, or even that she was sure that Ruby had seen her, instead it was…

_I-Impossible!_

She was…_jealous._ She _envied_ the closeness her treasure was able to have with her Tsukki.

Even now, the images she had seen wouldn't leave her mind. She had never guessed human intercourse could be so…_pleasurable_. The moans and screams of the raven-haired witch echoed in her ears, as did her vampire's equal sounds of satisfaction. She had seen him close to nude many times over the course of their time in her realm, and just as many times panting and sweaty from exertion in his endeavors. Never had she seen those traits together like that, and the woman accepting him into her body had nothing but good things to say, so it seemed.

_I am not even capable of reproducing until my first year has passed, I know this! Why does my body burn so!_ She raged internally. _If indeed this form has aged appropriately, I should appear as one already through thirteen years, I have much left before I would be a suitable partner for… _Deep crimson painted her dark face at the track her mind had taken, but with a snarl she shook herself free. _These thoughts are inappropriate! I am his partner, his Familiar!_ But a part of her longed to be what the witch had called him: his lover.

Lips formed in a hard line, the dragon scowled at the night sky. She had thought she would have more time until the desires started encroaching. It appeared as if she did not. Her heart was already bound to him in an inescapable relationship, it was only natural her body wish to follow. Watching him in the act did nothing to help quell the strength of those growing wishes. She would suffer through them, just as she knew the younger witch, Yukari, was doing. Fortunately for her, her body would grow sufficiently within the next year's time. If she chose to do something then, no one could stop her. Yukari had to wait through another _five_.

Rei resolved right then to make a better effort at befriending the girl when they returned.

Calmed by the new prospect, the dragon was able to smile.

If what she had to look forward to was anything like what she had seen, she would actually have to thank the headmaster for forcing her into a human form.

All she could do now was wait, and she was nothing if not patient.

Tsukune had no idea in just how many ways she had _chosen_ him.

…

After putting her clothes in the washer and taking a much needed shower, Ruby limped her way back to her room. Tired didn't even _begin_ to describe her, she was absolutely exhausted.

_In the best way possible,_ she thought impishly. Oh how she was sore however, regardless of how amazingly wonderful it had felt at the time. There would be no sitting for her tomorrow, or walking…or standing…or moving of any kind in general. She didn't even know _how_ some of the muscles ailing her had been strained, but she was sure whatever it was had been for a worthy cause. It certainly was true what they said about the quiet ones.

Maneuvering around the comatose bodies littered across her room, she just barely managed to put on her pajamas before she slumped into bed. She would have much rather slept with Tsukune but if she did that she knew she wouldn't have made it back in time, which left returning the only viable option. He had given her a few ideas for projects to work on with Yukari before he came back as she had left too, so her trip couldn't have gone better in her mind.

Now all she needed was a peaceful forty-eight hours of sleep.

She was out before she had even closed her eyes.

.

V^^^V

.

How much time had passed? Honestly, he couldn't be sure. Half of his time was spent in a drug-induced stupor, and the other half was spent in agonizing pain that had him wishing for the drug-induced stupor. The bones in his body were mending, slowly but surely, but he was sure those damn orderlies were taking entirely unneeded time to replace the blood packs that were emptied in his body's haste to replenish itself. It was adding time to the healing process that wasn't required!

He tried moving but even with the drugs, that sparked a degree of pain previously unknown to him to life. How had he allowed himself to be reduced to this? He was a _vampire!_ It should have been child's play for him to dispatch the worthless man that stood up to his claim on _her_. She was his by right, he had been promised so! His time with her wasn't long admittedly, but she was still supposed to be _his!_ He had heard of her separate personalities and yet he had met her elegant, vampiric self, and she had confirmed what the other had said! How had she been able to unseal her powers?

_The boy!_

An enormous headache burst through his mind as the realization came to him. Her so-called blood-mate could release her seal! Trying to think any further about the events leading to that caused him pain unlike anything even his body was telling him about, so he dropped the topic while he could. The pressure on his brain relieved immediately, and he let out a sigh of relief.

She was just as beautiful as he had heard, her power and grace more than he could have ever predicted or dreamed of. He wanted her badly, but he would need to redeem himself in her father's eyes first. She would get what was coming to her. He would make her regret what she did to him. Her father would be less than pleased to hear what had transpired, to put it lightly. They had known she had taken up company with a boy over her time at the academy, but to think for even one moment that she would consider him her _blood-mate_ was something none of them had anticipated. He needed to be informed right away, yet as he was his body was practically soup. Feeling bones regenerate was not the most pleasant of experiences, and he knew his left arm had practically been ground to dust. He needed to drink, _feast_, not wait for the transfusion bags to be replaced!

He couldn't risk the wrath of another Dark Lord though, especially not when he wasn't at full health. The headmaster of Youkai Academy was renowned for his techniques, sealing among them, and that left him a very vulnerable target lying in a hospital bed as he was. All it would take was one visit and he could find himself with a seal harder to remove than _hers_, and that would lose him any respect he might have had in the higher courts. He cursed bitterly.

All he could do was wait until he could move. Her family would find out about this, he guaranteed it.

It wouldn't be long now.

.

V^^^V

.

Tsukune looked with satisfaction written all over him as he held the little book he had been given in his one hand, his other pointed towards the skid of destruction still simmering in front of him.

From his side, Rei smiled. "Abra kadabra indeed."

He laughed. Learning magic was going to be _fun_.

…

.

**Author's Notes:** This chapter took longer than I thought just because I needed to keep both Tsukune and Ruby as much in character as I could. Thankfully I had been working up to it with the last chapter and Tsukune's acceptance of his more primal desires, in both senses. I wasn't going to go with anything too extreme right of the bat, but I think it turned out really well regardless.

Anyways, just as a side note, is anyone as ticked off at the last chapter of the manga as I am! Yeah, your family tried to kill me and my friends, doesn't matter, we're buddy-buddy now! _Not!_ I don't care if your family is a representation of the Romeo/Juliet paradigm, for all appearances they tried to kill the people I've spent years trying to protect! Friends! I have two words for you: F U!

Seriously, these new characters are annoying. Then there's the fact that Tsukune still insists he's human. It's a good trait of his, and one I've had to show him growing out of because I know how much he originally stuck to it, but come on. If you can stop a phoenix with your bare hand I don't think you qualify as human anymore. The sooner he accepts that the better, which is why I've had him go through all the development I have in my story. He really needs to accept that.

And what's up with Hokuto in the wheelchair? They showed him _walking away_ from the school during the first season's manga, and now all of a sudden he's in a wheelchair! It's times like these that I know why I took up fanfiction, because sometimes it's so much better to read what someone else has written than the actual thing. Naruto is a shining example of that. Ugh, just thinking about all the crap _that_ author has done gives me shivers.

Alrighty, rant over. I was just a bit upset over the last chapter of the manga, in case you couldn't tell. I hope you all enjoyed the chapter, and if you do, please tell me about it! Thank you everyone who continues to review! They give me motivation!


	17. Homecoming

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Rosario+Vampire, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story. Simple enough, ne? Just don't copy from this story and we're all good!

…

**Homecoming**

…

A yawn was the largest sign of life that had been seen in one particular room for the better part of twenty-four hours, other than the occasional snore or shift in sleeping position. Arms still growing in adolescence stretched mightily from under haphazardly arranged blankets, and eventually Yukari Sendou's dark violet eyes fluttered open. Rubbing the crust from those eyes, the teen was shocked when her highly intelligent mind registered the fact that she wasn't in an ungodly amount of discomfort. Mizore and Kurumu had been very…_enthusiastic_ in physically training both her and Ruby, and though there had been benefits already—more of which she knew would take some time to come—the price had been the health of her poor, underdeveloped muscles. If she kept up the training regimen she had been doing though, they certainly wouldn't be underdeveloped for much longer.

Be that as it may, she had been in pain for the better part of the two weeks they had been enhancing her nonexistent physical prowess, both in strength and flexibility, so she was more than slightly confused by the pain's sudden disappearance. Not that she was complaining, but something about the entire situation just seemed…off. Risking a glance over at the archaic clock on Ruby's wall, the young witch bolted upright when she saw it read well past noon. Some might have thought midnight initially, but if the sun coming in through the blinds was any indication it definitely meant post-meridiem. This might have not been so surprising if the black and white duet hadn't taken cruel glee in forcing their students awake so the majority of the day could be spent in their exercises.

She briefly wondered if this was just an equally cruel dream her subconscious was playing on her as she slept, and when she woke up it would again be too early for her tired body. One pinch took care of that. Looking around, the reason why she hadn't been awakened early was answered when she saw her two teachers—and tormentors—still sleeping on their futons. In fact, she was the _first_ one up!

"I think I'm in a parallel universe or something," the pubescent teen muttered under her breath as she threw off her covers. Throwing a towel over her shoulder, she thought it best to use the time to her advantage. She hadn't had a nice long shower to do anything other than lessen the ache of her growing body ever since vacation started. Now she could change that, and oh was she was going to enjoy it.

The dorm was practically deserted as she made her way to the bathrooms, which suited her just fine. Witches had been gaining respect among the students ever since Ruby had become the headmaster's assistant, but it wasn't like views had changed overnight. There were still more than a few that looked down on the boundary beings, but she had learned not to care and actually mean it, not dwell on it inside. Her beloved Tsukune had once been _human_, and had faced prejudice that had threatened his very life. He was her beacon of light in a sense when it came to change, and she would never forget what he and Moka had done for her. The mumbles of those around her were pointless to her, she had something they would never have, and that was all she needed.

Casting a wink to herself in one of the mirrors, she stepped into the curtained area of a shower and stripped before allowing the gloriously hot water to massage her soft skin. She was part of a family that would never let her down, that counted on her to watch their backs. She was loved regardless of what she was, and the only thing that annoyed her was she couldn't _show_ it until she was older. Her old Grow Drops invention had come to mind too often for her to count, just begging her to perfect its flaws and taste the fruits of what was forbidden to her now, yet she had held off on the temptation. It aged her body, there was no doubt of that, but it wouldn't change Tsukune's view of her. He cared for her, she knew that much, but she was still only thirteen years old.

Her body was changing, slowly but surely, just like every other person's did through those years of life. Puberty sucked, but in her mind it was only a stepping-stone to what she wanted, so she was all too happy to endure it. The sooner she was older the better. For now, she had accepted the fact that she would have to wait for her precious vampires to love her in that way. She would enjoy what was left of her younger years while she could.

Plus, it wasn't like she couldn't get a certain succubus to 'share the wealth'. That dream still made her tingle.

She giggled deftly.

Tsukune would have a coronary if he knew about _that_.

No, she was perfectly content for now. They had started calling each other by _just_ their names, and allowed _her_ to do the same even though she was so much younger than them! She would work hard to become the woman she knew she could be, a woman better than even her Grow Drops had shown she could become. She would defend her family proudly, and when the day came that she could give her body to them, she would do so with no regrets, as the woman that had waited for her vampires. No sooner, no later.

Thinking like that always brought a smile to her face, and this time was no different. Giddy with fresh energy from an amazing sleep and her first truly enjoyed shower in two weeks, Yukari very nearly skipped down to her room for a change of clothes. She wasn't thrilled about having to wear the unflattering track suit students were given, but skirts were by no means advantageous to a training environment. She was humming a cheery tune to herself as she shimmied into her pants when she took a look over at her alarm clock, her _modern_ alarm clock, unlike Ruby's decorative antique one. Of course, that meant it had the wonderful feature of showing the month and day in a small corner off to the side.

Yukari Sendou paled. Was she anyone else she might have screamed too, or at least done a gurgling double-take. Actually, she did do the latter, as well as check every known source of time in the near vicinity as fast as possible, which only confirmed her clock's message.

She had been asleep for a little over twenty-four hours.

_A whole day! Have we all been out for _that_ long! _How_ have we been out for that long!_

Her mind spiraled with possibilities, most revolving around an impossible theory that involved hibernation and excessive muscle damage, but there was the one floating around that suggested something of the more…induced variety. Since there were only two people that were capable of something like that among their group—she being one of them—that left a grand total of one person who could spike something of theirs with the requisite potion. Well, _technically_ there were three people that might have the knowledge to pull something like that off, but considering Kurumu was more likely to blow herself up alchemizing anything other than love drugs or aphrodisiacs, there was really only one suspect to consider.

While she couldn't deny the restorative additives that she was actually quite grateful for, the teenage witch was more than a bit peeved that her older counterpart had found it fit to do it under their noses. It was ingenious if she was being honest, because by adding the healing supplements it made sure they would sleep until their bodies were back to peak condition, which also hastened their muscle growth at the same time. It was the only explanation for why she was suddenly back to full health. Why she chose to do it without consulting her was what had her confused and angry. She would have been more than willing to go along with it had she been informed beforehand! It was a great idea after all, and she had nothing against those. In fact, she didn't know why _she_ hadn't thought of it. It was perfect for what they were trying to accomplish.

The more important thing she was worrying about was what Ruby had to gain by putting the rest of her friends into a temporary coma. There was no reason to! Well, she might have wanted some time to recover, and Yukari could understand that completely. If what she had been feeling was anything like what _her_ body had been going through, she understood very well. Had Tsukune not been in a separate dimension she might have had motive, but the door to Paradise had been locked to prevent those that might try to get in from their side. Tsukune could open it from the inside of course, but the only ones who could open it from outside were the headmaster and…

The genius suddenly felt terrible for her friend. _Moka's not going to be too happy if Ruby did what I think she did…_

It had become increasingly obvious that their resident pink-haired vampiress was feeling the strain from being away from her blood-mate for so long. That was best shown in how _Kokoa_ was the one sporting more than a few bruises at the ends of their sessions now, rather than the opposite as had been the case before. The way Moka had starting throwing herself into their spars as the days progressed had delighted the younger sibling at first, but it soon became apparent that there was more behind her blows than simply a desire to get stronger. Kokoa's seriousness had increased with the onset of that—she wasn't going to let such wonderful passion for battle go to waste—and their spars were looking less like training and more like real gladiatorial matches, which said something of Moka's growing prowess. It was more like she was relearning things she already knew than learning something new completely, so that probably explained it.

The fact remained that the absence of Tsukune—and likely his blood—was grating on the woman's nerves. Mizore and Kurumu didn't even try to hide it like she did, but _they_ didn't have to go to blood packs now that he wasn't among them. The probability of the vampiress not reacting _well_ to the likelihood of Ruby visiting Tsukune by herself was higher than one might think as a result.

An evil grin spread on Yukari's face. _If _I_ have to wait so long for _my_ turn, I think some _punishment_ is in order for someone who can't control themselves like I can._ She giggled maniacally as she made her way back to the room they were all staying in. Sneaking in through the door as stealthily as she could, that smile stayed in place when she saw the others were still sleeping. _Now, time to test this theory_…

Surprisingly, that didn't take long at all. As soon as she moved the other witch's blanket down below her neck she was given irrefutable proof of acts better left unknown to a thirteen year old mind. The slightly discolored skin more commonly referred to as a hickey stood out plainly on her neck, and if that wasn't enough there were others that could be seen…before they disappeared under the fabric of her nightshirt. Where _they_ were going was all too clear.

_Tsukune you bad, bad boy,_ she thought with another giggle. That turned to a heavy gulp when she noticed they _clearly_ weren't the only marks that had been left on the older woman's body, some just barely visible from under her pajamas, and all hinting towards different carnal acts. The evil grin returned as she carefully reached over and traced one of the hickeys on her neck, and the elder witch hummed happily in whatever dream she was having.

"Hehe…Tsukune…not there…" she mumbled sleepily, but instead of moving away she turned into the contact, exposing more of herself from under the covers. "So good…"

Yukari had to force herself not to burst out laughing. If there had been any doubt, any doubt at all, there wasn't any now. Doing her best to keep under control, she thought of the best way she could take advantage of the situation. If she was dreaming….

"Have you waited long, Ruby?" she whispered into the sleeping woman's ear, not even bothering to keep the smile out of her voice.

"Mmhmm," the drowsy response came, "so long. I waited…as long as I could…but it was so hard…I could never…never be alone with you…. Busy…always busy…. Not fair…"

And now she just felt terrible. Truth be told the exhausted witch had a point, and she knew it. She _had_ waited a long time for anything to happen between them, especially since there was no annoying age-difference hindering anything that _could_ happen. With all of their friends constantly around and her own responsibilities as overall go-to person in the school, time just between them was…nonexistent, now that she thought about it. She could hardly fault her for finally taking things into her own hands when the chance presented herself; she would do the same if she was in her shoes!

Too bad she hadn't noticed the emerald eyes that popped open when Tsukune's name passed the other woman' lips.

"Ruuuuuuubyyyyyyyy…" a new voice crooned, sickeningly sweet from over her shoulder.

That voice snapped the sorceress awake in an instant. Hesitantly looking to the side, Yukari was doing her best to fade into the wall while Moka stood before her bed, cracking her knuckles. The tick developing over her eye _couldn't_ be healthy. She gulped. "Um…yes…?" she croaked.

"Did you go see Tsukune…_without me?_"

Another gulp answered at first, this one heavier than the last. "Um…yes?" She had thought only Inner Moka could project such a potent aura of doom when she didn't like an answer, but she was being proven wrong. _Very_ wrong. "I'm dead, aren't I?"

The smile she received wasn't very comforting.

"Let's see…have you had to ache for a touch you _knew_, not a touch you _imagined_, week after week? Has your body literally _throbbed_ to sink its teeth into a perfection it knows nothing else can compare to? Have you had to resort to _tasteless, LIFELESS_ blood bags just so you could get up in the morning, _knowing_ he wouldn't be there? Have you had an inner voice nattering in your ear as much as it could, so freaking deep in withdrawal you start getting_ fantasies_ when you should be getting _instructions?_ I'm past my three-week limit and I've still got two more to go! The _only_ reason I haven't _made_ you bust down that door for me is I know Tsukune wouldn't want me to!" Her normally kind eyes glinted with manic light, and poor Ruby could only scamper into the corner of her bed facing the wall. "I believe the phrase I'm looking for here is: any last words?"

'Mommy' came to mind. She could always take the high road, maybe save herself some suffering…

"I regret nothing!"

Or maybe not.

Just as she thought, it hurt, it _really_ hurt, but only after Moka had been able to stop laughing.

…

When everyone was up at last and Yukari had shared her—confirmed—hypothesis with them all, feelings of sympathy were in short supply. It wasn't that they didn't feel bad for the witch, it was just that they all wished they had been able to do the same thing. Well, Kokoa felt bad for the woman at least, likely because she was the only one in the room that didn't want to jump Tsukune at a moment's notice. Maybe she was just better at hiding it. None of them cared to find out right then.

Mizore and Kurumu had shared Moka's jealousy but they could only bow to the cunning employed by their elder. Most of Moka's frustration was spawned from her lack of preferred blood, which was only multiplied by her very physical longing. That both were from the same source made an already bad problem so much worse. Still, all had vowed never to get on Moka's bad side when in such a state. It was plain _scary_.

"I didn't think that position was humanly possible…" Mizore muttered in awed horror, blinking dazedly beside her duet partner.

"I'd agree with you, but since its right in front of us…" Kurumu answered as she fought to keep her jaw from dangling. Yukari was looking rather pale off to their side, and Moka looked weathered but otherwise pleased with herself as she stood in front of the other witch's bed.

"She had it coming," the vampiress responded simply as she crossed her arms over her chest and smiled in satisfaction.

"Those ropes look…uncomfortable," the snow woman stated hesitantly.

"She didn't want to stay still!"

"What happened to her clothes?" the succubus dared ask, finding the picture oddly erotic.

"She didn't want to stay still!"

"So…the handcuffs?"

"See above."

"And the ball gag?" the ice maiden queried.

"It started to sound like she was enjoying it too much."

"Are those clothes pins?" the blue-haired woman inquired in veiled fear.

"Hence the ball gag."

"_Where_ did you find this stuff!" the two cried at once as they upped Outer Moka's position on their 'people not to piss off' list.

"Her closet," the pinkette replied flippantly.

They almost fell flat on their faces standing straight up. For some reason, that didn't surprise them one bit.

…

When her punishment was deemed finished, their assistant club advisor was freed, barring a promise to stay away from Paradise for the remainder of Tsukune's training of course. It went without saying that Moka hadn't been upset about her senior getting a taste of what Tsukune could offer behind closed doors—she had reconciled herself to _that_ a long time ago—but she _had_ been more than a bit angry that she had effectively knocked them all out to do so. She had to admit she did feel pretty good as a result of the concoction, but the least the other woman could have done was let her come along! That was most of the reason right there.

Ruby sat on her bed, newly showered, and popped some joints back into place with a content sigh. The lingering discomfort of her heated bouts with their lover had been reemphasized, but overall she certainly wasn't going to complain. She hurt, in many, many places, but it wasn't anything she couldn't live through. Stripping her towel without the slightest bit of shame, the witch sashayed naked to her armoire, proudly displaying her body to the rest of her family. Who was she to care if they saw her sans clothing? It was bound to happen sooner or later, so she decided to skip the pretenses. It also gave her a wonderful thrill, but she wouldn't tell them that anytime soon.

Kurumu and Yukari whistled appreciatively as she walked by and Mizore and Moka actually laughed, though naturally none of the light bruises on her had gone unnoticed. Tossing them a devilish smirk from over her shoulder, she pulled on one of her softer undergarments and another of her skirts before tugging a light long-sleeved shirt over her impressive chest. Normally she wouldn't wear something so conservative, but in case she had to go outside her room she didn't want everyone else to see her reminders of Tsukune-induced bliss.

"He sure did a number on you, didn't he?" the charm mistress asked playfully as she admired the witch's physique. She knew some _Succubae_ that would find it hard to beat the older woman's body tone, but the same could be said of most of the women in their group, with the exclusion of Kokoa and Yukari. For now.

The aide sat down on her bed gingerly, just barely resisting the smile that wanted to break out at the memory of what had caused her need to do that. "And what a high number it was," she replied with matching mischievousness. "I almost didn't recognize him. Whatever Rei-chan's doing with him, boy is it _ever_ working. He's becoming a real threat over there; you can see it in him! God, he's just so…" She shivered in place, licking her suddenly dry lips with perhaps too much intent.

The only pinkette of their group swallowed heavily, trying without success to fight off her newly-reignited imagination. "So he's doing alright?" she asked nervously.

Her answering grin _radiated_ lust. "He's more than alright, Moka. He'd look no worse for wear at all if his clothes healed the same way he did!" She laughed there as she enjoyed the image that sentence recalled. "He said his shoes were a lost cause in just a couple of days, his pants are mostly shorts, and he's stopped wearing shirts altogether! Destruction to wardrobe aside, it's a great look for him if I do say so myself! Gotta love the wild…" The same dazed look came over all of them at the same time, including—as much as she would later deny it—Kokoa.

"Tarzan Tsukune ~desu! I wanna see, I wanna see!" Yukari cried in excitement, not that any of the others were about to blame her.

"You'll have to wait until he comes back, _just like the rest of us,_" Moka said pointedly as she glared at one of their members in particular, who looked away bashfully in turn.

"Phooey!"

It garnered some much-needed laughter in the tense group, and finally things were less strained when they had stopped.

Sensing a change of topic was needed if she wanted to keep what little sanity she had left, the older vampiress among them attempted to steer them back on course. "So what are we going to do today?"

"The same thing we do every day, Pinky," Yukari replied with a huge grin. "Try to take over the world!"

The only thing they could do to that was laugh until it hurt to breathe.

"Oh man," Kurumu coughed with her own huge smile in place, "I needed that!" Stretching her arms above her head with a satisfied sigh, the succubus looked up thoughtfully. "And as for what to do, I doubt Ruby's gonna be able to do any training today." She knew _that_ from experience. "Kokoa and Moka can do what they want, but unless you want to train with me and Mizore by yourself Yukari, I don't know."

"Actually," the subject of Moka's earlier ire started sagely, "I have a few ideas. Well, most are Tsukune's ideas, but I think they're worth looking into." That had everyone's attention in a hurry, which Ruby had to smile at. "I might have had an ulterior motive, but I also dropped by to give Tsukune a magic book with most of the basics. We might have a vampire well on his way to becoming a magus when he comes back, and he gave me some things to think on too."

With that Yukari truly looked hurt. "Y-You gave him a book of spells w-without me…?"

The older witch quickly hugged her younger equivalent, lest she get the wrong idea. "I just gave him a starter book with a focus, I wouldn't dream of teaching him without you there."

"B-But what if he gets hurt!"

"Rei-chan might be more magical than either of us," she answered simply. "She would know if something was going to go wrong. Besides, the stuff I wrote down for him is really just the basics of the basics. It's to give him the language and some theory to work on, so we'll have an easier time getting him to understand the more difficult things later on. It's more of a pronunciation guide than anything. I only gave him a few actual spells to try. When he comes back we can exchange the notebook inside the book-cover focus I made for one more advanced, and when he has that one down increase the difficulty again, and so on and so forth."

That brightened the other girl's outlook considerably, and she clasped hard to the lovely aide. "I never should have doubted you ~desu!"

"So what kind of ideas could he have given you?" Mizore questioned honestly. She had seen many times the sheer power magic could have, not to mention Yukari's various magical machines, but for someone with no prior knowledge of magic to be giving suggestions seemed farfetched.

"Nothing I didn't already know, but he made some good points about which ones Yukari and I should focus on with the time we have left. We won't get done them all, but if we can get the highest priority one done we'll be a lot more useful in a longer fight. We'll need all the strength we can get if we're going to be fighting vampires."

"But…!" Moka started instantly, then bit her lip to stop herself. She didn't want her new family to be hurt, and even vampires like Alexander would be a difficult obstacle in any kind of group. They had every right to fight beside her, but… "…I just…don't want any of you to get hurt…it's bad enough Tsukune's all but completely blocked off from his vampire abilities, at least he has Rei-chan to help him heal if anything too critical happens! If I lost him I'd die, but if I lost any of you I don't know if I'd be able to live with myself…"

Every eye in the room warmed with empathy, and she was soon wrapped in an embrace from her whole family, both old and new.

"You think we'd be any better if we lost you? Yes, I'm talking about Inner too," Kurumu whispered. "We've all changed, Moka, and we've done our hardest to make sure it's for the better. Inner Moka cried, and not just that she cried right in front of us. She cried because she was just as scared of losing Tsukune as we were, and she wasn't afraid to show us that. I knew, right then, that I would kill to protect your happiness, both of your happiness, just like I know you'd kill to protect mine. I'm not going to allow anything to happen to either of you or Tsukune; we're a family, you said so yourself."

It was a sentiment shared by everyone in the room. Even Kokoa, who had once not cared if anything happened to the former human, would extend her protection to him, for his life had become bonded to her sister's, and her happiness had become his. If she could do anything to keep that joy alive, she would without fail. She knew her sister would do no less than the same for her.

As was expected, Moka broke down into tears.

They had things to do and not much time to do them, yet a vow was renewed as the group sat huddled together, sharing strength. They would be just as ready as Tsukune when he came back, and nothing, _nothing_, by natural or supernatural means was going to force them apart. It was time to step things up again.

No one could see the ghostly figure amongst them, or the glistening trails running down her cheeks. Even if she had to face Kahlua, even if she had to face _her_, she wouldn't let anything happen to her mismatched group of oddities, these strange people she could refer to as nothing less than her family. She had found her mate in the last race she would have considered, and because of him she had found a family even better than the one she had lost.

Long canines exposed threateningly to the heavens, she joined in their promise.

'_**Lasciate ogne speranza, voi ch'intrate.'**_ The saying had never seemed more fitting._** All hope abandon, ye who enter here. **_**Nothing**_** will take this from us.**_

_Nothing_.

…

In another dimension, Tsukune Aono found himself smiling for no reason at all. Normally that wouldn't have been so strange, but usually his smiles when he was hunting were of the more…bloodthirsty…variety. With an impressive illusion lacking even any kind of eye-contact, the monster below him soon believed it had been knocked unconscious by an inexplicably irate tree. What the damn thing was he had absolutely no idea; he had gotten used to seeing things that made Youkai Academy look downright normal in comparison!

The familiar tingle in his blood told him this was yet another mystery that contained something he could use, sadly he was under strict orders from Rei to refrain from using those extras on the same day he acquired them. The dragon took note of every hunt he completed successfully and what he felt after he was done feeding. If it was anything of worth she filed that away for future use and made sure she remembered where the monster-in-question's usual stomping grounds were. She had a memory that was quite simply frightening to comprehend. The point was: if it was something she took an interest in he found himself hunting what was left of the species the next day and draining all but what was necessary for them to survive. Not that he had anything against the tactic, or more specifically the near nonexistent thirst that was a welcomed side-effect of such a gluttonous binge, but his dreams were always worse than what he had come to expect on those days.

It was a small price to pay for the dramatic increase in potency he couldn't deny the day after such an event. Over the past couple of days Rei had even been making it easier than normal by offering him a wounded arm for him to feed from as breakfast. He never questioned her hesitance to be bitten by him. He knew it was a privilege to be allowed by any living thing to partake of their very lifeblood in the first place; he wasn't going to make a fuss over who made the initial wound.

Other than hunting, the time since Ruby had left had been spent reading his little leather book, which was to say that he and Rei both had gone over it cover to cover at least twice since its acquisition. Of course he was still struggling to wrap his mind around the different language, but the handwritten notebook protected under its leather cover told in simple detail the proper enunciation of each word and what it meant in general terms. Grammar, tenses, and even the finer points of the language were laid out in easy to understand vernacular that would help in the construction of sentences. That alone excited him, because that meant that if he actually mastered the book it would be possible for him to put together his own, albeit relatively simple, spells. The time Ruby must have spent writing each line reminded him much of what Moka had once done for him in math. It made him treasure the gift all the more.

To give further credibility to the old adage about speaking of a certain fallen angel, his Familiar dropped from one of the nearby trees with aforementioned gift in hand. He suspected her memory and aptitude for learning was what had made it possible to learn his language—and English of all things—in the positively miniscule amount of time she had, and that skill was being put to use again it seemed. She, and he for that matter, hardly knew there _was_ a language called Latin before this last week, but in so many days her tongue was already adapting to the foreign dialect. Not that he could really know if she was doing it properly, he was no expert on the subject and Ruby had only given him the basest of crash courses before she had to leave, but when Rei made some minor alterations to one of the few spells written in its entirety and had him repeat said alterations…he had stopped doubting her after that.

Why she couldn't try it out herself was simple. She couldn't use magic actively in the sense he and the witches of their group could, hers was a more subconscious domination that made nature concede to her will, sometimes mere presence, alone. It stopped her from doing the more industrious aspect of spells and magic, but her sheer might in the realm was more than enough cause for some serious trepidation. Even unsealed, he knew he would have no desire to face her as an enemy.

Contrary to the lifestyle they had held in the earlier weeks they had been getting back on a schedule, something he was more than thankful for. The lighting they had rigged in her cave was poor at best, and despite his spectacular night vision reading the words in the book wasn't easily done by torchlight. It would also help him get back into some sense of normalcy for his return to school. It might not start right away when he got back, but he doubted the others would be on the same skewed time he was. It was nice to be out in daylight again when most of his first two weeks had been under the cover of darkness, and painful to boot! He knew he probably wouldn't be able to do anything about the pain part for his remaining time in the realm, but he'd take what he could get.

"I daresay you are growing as confident with illusions as you are with your ice. 'Tis good to see, Tsukki," the dark-skinned teenager said with audible pride in her voice. Just hearing it made him want to puff out his chest a little. There was something to be said for positive reinforcement. "Did it hold anything of interest to you?"

"Not really," the young vampire responded as he walked under the shade of the tree, where his Familiar was waiting. Another thing he had learned was even though his skin was still darker than most when he was sealed, it wasn't the most resistant to sunlight anymore. Sunburn had been the least of his wounds over his time in Paradise, but it was still something he'd rather avoid. Lounging back on the grass with his unconscious prey just meters away, he cast Rei a cursory glance. "So? How'd I do this time?"

His chest did puff out when she smiled at him; when she was in her taskmaster mode that was high praise. "While I suspect a true Succubus gifted in illusions would easily complete such a task, I am most proud to see you no longer relying on locking their gaze."

She was honest, no one could say anything against that. At least she balanced the bad with the good. "So what should we do next, Rei-chan? There's so much we could do and just not enough hours in the day!"

The dragon chuckled as she snapped the book closed. She had enough of it to memory by now for what she needed. "There is little else I can think of that can be accomplished in planned exercises. All else you have yet to learn for your ice and illusions can only be taught by you, as you have been accomplishing admirably in the encounters thus far. 'Twas my goal to make you comfortable in their use for hunting, what you do with them in battle is up to you. If your encounter with the Hyakume has taught me anything, 'tis that you are more than capable of rising to any challenge. However, I have watched you fight without me long enough. I grow tired of looking on as a mere spectator. I will admit to my former inexperience fighting in this body, but was not your intention for us to do battle together when I became comfortable enough as well? I wish to be beside you, not behind you."

"You'll always be beside me, Rei-chan, you know that," he countered instantly.

The growl that thundered deep in her throat was loud enough for her true form. "Then why do I sense doubt in your heart? Is it because my appearance does not equal the age you believe me to be?"

He panicked at the turn the conversation was taking. "N-No, god no! Jeez, I know you're just as capable of taking care of yourself as anyone else my age!"

"Then why do you fight so against me? I am your Familiar, Tsukki, and all that title entails. I have waited patiently, teaching everything I know of stalking prey and honing your instincts. We have flown together; you have seen the world through my eyes, experienced that which none before you has known. I trusted you with my life from when I was no more than an egg, you trust me to keep you from falling from my back, and to catch you if ever you have need. Have I not rightfully earned my place?" Her tone was more than a bit hurt.

"…Gah, dammit!"

The next thing she knew those arms she had watched tear into monsters like so much wet paper were holding her gently, pressing her growing frame to his half-naked self. If it was ever wondered if a dragon could blush, the answer was an overwhelming affirmative. Good thing he couldn't see her face from her position.

"I spent most of my first year here getting the crap kicked out of me, I told you that," he started softly, but didn't remove his arms from her. "I was too weak to honestly protect anything, no matter how hard I tried, and I always ended up being the one protected. When the Ghoul thing happened I was too busy wallowing in fear and self-pity to even consider what I had been given was a gift, and even if I was on borrowed time that at least I could use it to protect the ones I cared about. From will and no power to power and no will. I got over that, obviously, but…I don't want anything to happen to you or any of the others. This time I'm the one with power to spare, if I can protect you or anyone from being hurt by taking it myself I'd do it in a heartbeat."

She punched him in the face.

Her cheeks were practically glowing and her heart felt strangely bloated in her chest, but another part of her couldn't believe what she had just heard. "You…you overwhelming…incompetent!" He sat on the ground staring at her, literally dumbstruck as he held his throbbing cheek. Stomping over to him, she smacked him on the head with his magical focus for safe measure. Glaring hard into his eyes, he had to wonder if she was capable of illusions too, because he was sure his life had just passed through his vision. "Have you learned _nothing?_ At times your wisdom surprises even me, and then you go and say something so incredibly stupid it addles my brain! This time away from our treasures was not all well-received I see, for you to fall back into such delusion."

She smiled then, warm and inviting and everything she hadn't been a second before. "Do you think for one moment that I, or any of our treasures, would rather see you hurt in lieu of ourselves? I can say this much with certainty: you are worth no less to us than we are to you; I swear that on our bond. In this solitude you have forgotten the burden is not yours alone, and I in my own foolishness allowed you to. You have put too much weight on your shoulders to make up for past failures, when instead you should be sharing your newfound strength with others. The power that carried you this far was not you alone, or even Moka-sama, but the strength you found in a group that was willing to put others above themselves. Imagine how light your troubles would be if the mighty vampire relinquished the brunt back to where it belonged, and a dragon added herself to your cause? We are not alone in this endeavor, Tsukki, 'twould be folly to think otherwise."

Silence. Utter stillness. Only the leaves and grass blew in the soft breeze carried over the land, ruffling Rei's jagged hair and blowing Tsukune's long bangs over his face. He picked himself up off the ground, somehow leaving that atmosphere undisturbed to walk towards her. Dragons were only ever small for a very short period of time, but when he stood before her she was reminded acutely of his superior stature in human form. He was an intimidating specimen of a male, with scars littered across bronzed flesh toned and finessed through untold hours of blood, sweat, and tears. She knew she had nothing to be afraid of, but there was something deep inside that shivered when his silver rosary caught the light.

This was all reduced to nothing when he moved to his knees, making himself smaller than her once again and bringing his face into her view. What should she find there but one of his heart-melting smiles.

"Moka usually just _gives_ me the heel; you, on the other hand like to make sure I _feel_ like one instead!" he joked lightly, his carefree attitude back and sobered with trust and understanding. She laughed with him; she had to, it was the truth after all. "You're an amazing person, Rei-chan, and I'm honored to have you with me. I've shown you what I can about fighting but I only know a bit about fighting with a partner as any kind of technique, so we'll both be in pretty new territory. I'm willing if you are. Partners?"

She grinned at his outstretched hand before folding one of her darker ones into it. "Partners."

Helping him to his feet, she held out his book to him, where her grin took on a more menacing glint when he reached for it. Then, without the slightest provocation she throttled the completely unprepared vampire in the head. As he lay on the ground with his eyes spinning, his Familiar appeared in his swimming vision with her smile back in place, looking for all appearances angelic in her innocence before placing the miniature book on his chest and patting his head.

"Partners we are; _now_ you are forgiven."

He took it back. Rei could 'give' the heel just as much as Moka if she wanted to. With a groan of grudging acceptance he picked himself up and tipsily followed the smug dragon to whatever torture awaited him next.

…

As much as he should have known better, he hadn't really _meant_ it. What that meant was Rei's next course of action was in fact close to the cruel and unusual punishment he had inwardly joked about. She had lead him back to the clearing in front of their cave home, picking up any small rock she found along the way. He hadn't given it any thought at the time, but when she turned around to look at him, holding the small pile purposefully in one cradled arm, he felt cold sweat drip down the back of his neck.

"Rei-chan…what are those for?" he asked fearfully. He cringed at the sparkle that entered her eyes when he asked that. That sparkle had long become associated with pain in the near future, with him as the lucky recipient. There was also the way she was tossing one of those numerous pebbles in her free hand. The Kamaitachi had been dealt with for the day, yet somehow he knew this was going to be worse…far, far worse.

"Page one, first word: name and description," she ordered tersely.

It took a whole two seconds before he knew what she wanted, and he had just gotten the book of magic open when he had to dive to the side, where a rock flew through the space he had occupied right before.

"Rei-chan! What gives!"

"Name and description!" she repeated as she threw another, once again forcing him into motion. "A sorcerer's weakness is commonly interpreted as their inability to adapt to physical confrontation. I shall make sure you can cast spells without restricting yourself to standing still, or worse: a singular center of attention." To prove her point, Tsukune had to jump from another projectile aimed at his person. "For every wrong answer another stone will be thrown, and if you take longer than five seconds to respond, that too earns an additional throw. As we progress your time will continue to be taken away, until I expect no less than an immediate response. You _will_ have that book memorized by the time we return. You have a vampire's ability, I shall simply force you to _use_ it."

Her partner mumbled a curse. He should have known better than to think anything with her would be plain, or God forbid, _easy_.

"First word!"

"Uh…u-um…first word…" he stuttered in a panic as he frantically steadied his page.

"Too slow!"

A piercing sting resonated from his left thigh.

"OW! Gah-damn-mother-grrrr-argh…just, argh!"

On it went, word after word, welt after welt, paper cut after paper cut. Tsukune's inhuman reflexes served him well in the makeshift do-or-die position, but he learned quickly dodging everything wasn't always the best course of action. Even if it took half a minute to answer correctly and he had escaped damage, he forgot that Rei's supply of tiny pellets was limited. The only thing to do after she ran out was grab from the ground, and she wasn't near as picky the second time around.

"Page ten, word six!"

He breezed by the shot closest to him, but with both hands free she was able to grab rocks with impunity and hurl them just as quickly. The next one caught him high in the right leg with a meaty _thump_ and he gritted his teeth to stem his anger.

"I swear you're aiming there!"

"Incorrect!" she yelled as another was let loose on her target.

"GAH! You realize I'd like kids sometime in the future, right!"

Rei fought back the color rising up her neck.

The next one hit him in the head.

Much evading and inarticulate expletives later and he had finally answered her latest question. "I've got a torso you know!"

"I know," she replied, with maybe too much mirth in her voice.

He glared at her. As much as he hated to admit it, it really was going to help him memorize the damn thing, if not just to see the look on her face when he turned some kind of spell back on her when she asked for a word. She didn't say it had to be _just_ the word. He would get the little demon back if it was the last thing he did.

What he hated to admit even more was he was having _fun_.

…

Fortunately when Rei finally stopped, she treated it like every other training exercise they had done, allowing him time to hunt and rest before moving on to something else. Tsukune didn't know what that 'something else' would be until they were out in the clearing once again. For some reason it came as a surprise when his Familiar bowed to him.

"I am in your hands, Tsukki. Just as I am your trainer, so are you my own. I look forward to fighting with you."

Despite the memory of the bruises long since healed, he couldn't find it in himself to hold any real animosity towards her. _Playful_ animosity on the other hand... He grinned. _This is going to be fun_.

"Alrighty Rei-chan; well, let's go over those katas I taught you to start with…"

She had learned well from him, moving through each pose with just as much purpose but not quite as much grace. That would come in time however, he above all knew that. He had never thought himself a teacher, but for one of his family he had, and would, try. Sure he had fought beside others before, but could he actually say he knew enough about fighting with a partner that he should be the one teaching it? A smile drew across his lips when a thought occurred to him. He _did_ know _some_ things about it.

_Yeah, that'd work, wouldn't it?_

Offering her his hand, with a raised eyebrow she took it.

"Now, Rei-chan, let's go through those katas again."

She started. "B-But Tsukki, you are aware that—"

"I know we're holding hands. Come on, let's go."

It was similar to dancing, with all the missteps, awkward movements and pain that its practice entailed. They were none too fluid by any extension, and more than once did the partners find themselves tangled in their limbs. Tsukune couldn't resist the temptation the aerobics presented, and kind or not he did enjoy watching her flail to the grass following yet another grievous 'mistake' on his part. Was it petty? Extremely. Was it worth it? Her indignant squawks as she lost her footing would keep him smiling on many a rainy day in the future.

After the fourth time Rei had fallen to the ground, she looked up fast enough to see his grin. Her beautiful steel eyes narrowed. "Would you so happen to be doing this on purpose, oh wonderful partner of mine?"

He gave her a smile similar to the one she would give him in the same state. "Not _all_ of it," he responded mischievously.

She growled through her own smile and tackled him. _Pick on me will he!_

Giggles and laughter floated through the air as the two rolled around, neither seriously putting forth any effort but still playing nonetheless. This continued to its inevitable conclusion, when the older and larger male finally pinned his squirming dragon-teen underneath him. Panting and laughing in tune with each other, Tsukune only realized what they must look like when he figured out the air he was breathing in was the air Rei was exhaling. With skin moist and chest heaving, it suddenly pronounced her growing figure well from under her grossly oversized clothes.

He was standing faster than Gin could sneeze.

Obviously the same thought had hit Rei shortly after his presence was removed from her, for her dark face was that much darker. The only difference was she wasn't going to lose any sleep over it. To tell the truth, she might, but it would be far from unpleasant. To see her partner breathless and sweaty over her was so close to her earlier subconscious fantasies that her pulse had increased just at the connection to them. While not unknown to her, it drove the point home that Tsukune did indeed see her as her own person, a woman for that matter, and would treat her as his morals demanded despite their already inescapable bond. To him, there was no real 'Familiar'. To him, she was simply Rei, a person who just so happened to have a unique and beneficial link with him, much like the rest of their group.

"R-Rei-chan, I'm sorry—" He was cut off when a small feminine hand placed itself in his again.

"Do not fret, Tsukki. Accidents happen, as they say. Now, shall we continue?"

He smiled gratefully.

Neither fell again.

.

V^^^V

.

Ten days. Ten days, six hours, twenty-seven minutes and forty-one seconds. He had _counted_ the time since his last foray into the realm of the conscious, where he had deemed it necessary to bide his time and wait until he could move with some amount of success before he attempted to flee. The blood bags had continued to come and with each, so did his strength. It was a slow-moving process, being with the extent of damage his body had incurred, but he was finally regaining feeling—other than pain—in his nearly crushed arm.

He had been able to move for a while, but he didn't dare make any sign of that to the staff that routinely came in to check on him. As long as they thought him helpless, things were good. The only annoying part was they seemed to have no set schedule, often popping in at the strangest of times for no readily available reason. It made a plan hard to set into motion, so he had gone with the only one he could. Slipping out unnoticed would be the best, but for that he needed to either evade everyone, or incapacitate those he encountered. At his current strength the latter would be impossible, yet not so if he could ensure a decent amount of blood before anyone else was alerted to his activities.

It wouldn't take much now. If he had access to living bodies he had little doubt he would be able to escape without much trouble. All he needed was blood. He had waited long enough, worked himself into a rage that would see the Shuzen woman his over that time, or if not that then at his feet. Her social standing may be higher than his, but that was the whole point of the arrangement, why most on her long waiting list even agreed apart from her very noticeable beauty. It was seen as an act of good faith, or perhaps a warning. He didn't know, nor did he rightfully care. She had done nothing but prolong the inevitable with his hospitalization. Eventually he would get better, or possibly word would get out about what had happened and the others would come. She was not out of the woods; it seemed better to associate their meeting as her start _into_ the woods.

However, he hadn't expected her to be able to remove her rosary. Like many others he had assumed it to be a prison, which was why they were being granted access to her in the first place. The boy complicated matters. Had he been able to defeat him before she had regained consciousness things would have gone much differently, of that he was sure. When he returned, he wouldn't make the same mistake again. Somehow the ice-user had managed to hold his own against a vampire of his standing, and that was unacceptable. Next time there would be no pulled punches. There was a weakness he knew of now, even if that same weakness had originally complicated what the plan should have been. He just needed to exploit it. An edge was needed, and he knew just where to get it.

A sound alerted him to a new presence in the room, and he cautiously cracked open an eye to see a nurse checking the greatly depleted blood bag by his side. Flexing his muscles experimentally, he was pleased to find them more responsive than before. They had made a mistake by believing him too wounded to tie down. He was going to show them the error of that assumption, and no better time than the present. The nurse didn't even have the time to scream before the vampire had launched towards her and sunk his fangs into her neck. Any noise she might have made, and even the hand she had struggling to the emergency button just inches away, were stopped in their progress as her strength was stolen from her, until soon she slumped into his arms, unconscious.

Alexander smirked victoriously as he felt his health return, so much faster than it had been able to before. They had been purposefully hindering his recovery, there was no other explanation, and they had good reason to, for Moka's sake. He could admire them for that, but now he had things to do. Maneuvering the woman into his bed and covering her with his sheets, he found the nondescript clothes every hospital kept in their closets and discarded the embarrassing gown he had been placed in upon his admission. It was time to move.

As much as he might have gained from his latest feed, he still needed more blood. A longing glance was thrown back at the body hidden under his blankets on what had been his bed, but he knew if he took any more he would kill her. It wouldn't have been the first time, but he didn't want to bring another Dark Lord into the mix if he could help it. As long as his prey was only protected by her friends his mission was possible, he knew the aloofness of Youkai Academy's headmaster and it wasn't likely he would intervene unless something truly pertaining to his school was threatened. _She_ might be a student, but his goal was something allowed by the girl's own father and trumped anything the headmaster might be able to claim. If he killed a faculty member, that would go out the window. He already wasn't doing himself any favors by taking their blood, but teachers and the like had been assaulted in the past and he hadn't done anything, so he could only hope the trend continued.

Moving about as stealthily as he could and ignoring the persistent throbbing of what remained of his wounds, every healthy person he came across was attacked before they knew any better and drained into an anemic sleep. It served the double purpose of silencing anyone who saw him and returning his strength, and soon enough he was walking comfortably along, all traces of his former disability gone.

Now he could leave.

…

Far away from Youkai Academy, deceptively close to another of the wormhole tunnels, his home held the same foreboding it always did, welcoming the young master back into its halls with flickering lamplight. After he had wiped the grime from his body and dressed like one of his status was expected to, he felt his confidence come back with vigor. He had failed once, but he wouldn't again. He couldn't afford to.

"And so he returns at last. Did she prove to be above your limitations, little brother?"

He stiffened at the nonchalant jab, already knowing who was behind him. "I thought you didn't care," he snapped back gruffly as he turned with a snarl.

The man leaning in his doorway shrugged, pinning him in place with his rich wine-colored eyes. "I don't. Your response tells me more than enough however. You were given an opportunity because of our family's status, not your own. To fail in this will reflect badly on us."

Alex bristled, his fangs bared threateningly. "Need I remind you, _you_ turned down the chance? I _will_ succeed, so either help me or get out of my way, _Nii-sama._"

The older vampire's appearance shone into view as the veil of darkness was scattered with the flick of a switch, revealing a man that true to form, looked like an older, more refined version of the younger male standing opposite him. The differences showed in the brightness of their hair, and while Alexander made no effort to restrain his Youki, his brother made no effort to flare his. His poise projected his confidence so much better, a fact Alex had always secretly tried to imitate. It didn't help that _he_ already had a mate, one he had been together with for a surprising amount of time. He made no mention of his feelings every time he saw another woman exit their property after one of his brother's tryst's, but deep down the younger vampire knew that he was disappointed he had yet to bring another vampire home.

A grayish-silver eyebrow inched its way up. His brother seemed genuinely curious now. "Did something happen?"

"She claims to have a mate."

That eyebrow rose higher. "Really?"

"A _blood_-mate," he hissed pointedly.

His brother blinked, his usual expression wiped blank in momentary surprise. "A blood-mate? Really?" he mused again, more to himself than any other it seemed. "Why were we not informed?"

Alexander growled. "You assume she had her family's blessing."

"Now that _is_ interesting. I would assume this mate you mentioned was the one responsible for your late return?"

"In a manner of speaking," he responded slowly, spitting the awful taste of every word from his tongue.

"How so?"

"He hails from the Snow People, but fights with a ferocity I've never seen in them. I would have defeated him, but I was…interrupted." He gritted his teeth at his brother's inquisitive glance. "…He can remove her seal. I waited too long. If he had been down before she awoke, there would have been no complications."

At that the other vampire had straightened from his casual tilt. "A Snow _Man_, and one able to fight a _vampire_ for any length of time? Highly…unusual; I can see how that would complicate things. Moka-sama was always known for her power before she was sealed, it makes sense you would be no match for her if she was released."

Alex's hands were curled into white-knuckled fists, clutched so tight he almost broke skin. "_She_ will be brought, just as was agreed. If the boy is broken, she is no threat."

"I take it you plan on telling her family?"

"I will…_after_ I dispose of the boy. I need to save face; Lord Shuzen would not be happy if I reported my failure and not have done anything towards a solution. I'm sure he would be pleased if I got rid of the nuisance. I plan on going back as soon as I can, so will you help me or not?"

He contemplated the request for a little while. "Wait one day. If your demeanor is anything to go by you've only recently escaped confinement from…injuries…?" His question was answered by the glower directed his way. "Yes, injuries. Wait a day, allow your body to fully recover, and get some _real_ sleep. We'll leave tomorrow."

The younger sibling couldn't stand it when his brother was right, but he saw the value in his advice. "Fine," he growled. "Tomorrow. They'll stand no chance against us."

Nodding, the other man shooed him off.

When he was alone, his eyes narrowed. "You may be a fool, but you're still my brother. If you want to save face, you have to face your mistakes first. Your pride is one thing, our family is another."

Between the two, he knew which one he would always pick.

…

There was always a sense of insignificance brought upon him when he walked among these walls, but it was a necessary evil. He was glad for his calm, it was what gained him respect even amid people many times his better, and he wasn't about to abandon it just because of the mansion's impressive intimidation. He knew the castle's master was far, far worse.

"Well well, what brings _you_ here, Vincent-kun? I thought you were happy with your mate?"

Vincent resisted the shiver that undoubtedly crawled down his spine despite his fight against it. Of course, even the master of the castle would have been preferred to meeting _her_, especially alone in the mansion's halls. The things he did for his brother. "Very much so, Shuzen-sama. I merely have something I thought I should bring to your family's attention."

Stepping out of the shadows, the oldest Shuzen sister was shown in her full glory. Mixed between interest and apathy, her face still looked as beautiful and unapproachable as ever, framed by dark ebony locks that belied her frightening power. Tall and voluptuous, mysterious and powerful, she was what every woman aspired to be and what every man wanted.

And she was the single most terrifying thing Vincent had ever met apart from her father.

"Oh? What would that be?"

He would help Alexander, but only after someone else knew his younger brother was acting on his own. Then the success, or more importantly the _failure_, would be his alone. His family wouldn't suffer because of his stupidity. All that was left was Moka Shuzen. More would come if they were unsuccessful, and at least that would be assured if he did indeed fail. Alexander wouldn't be the only one in trouble then, especially if what he had said was true.

.

V^^^V

.

It had taken a long time, but with Yukari's genius and Ruby's resourcefulness they had been able to get the concept down with a couple of days to spare. The metals had been the hardest to find, and it had taken even longer to alchemize them down into the proper components and molded into shape. Between their physical training and the research and labor required for the completion of their project, it was a miracle they were as far as they were. Even with Yukari, it had taken Mizore's steady hand and impossibly sharp ice to stencil the proper glyphs into the small items. It would have been easier if they had made them larger, but the smaller they were the easier they would be to hide, and to wear for that matter.

Lying on the ground was what they had worked so hard to make: two simple bracelets, covered with cloth to hide the markings carved into the metal underneath. There was still another step to complete before they could work as what they were made to be, the last thing they were currently toiling on. The plain bands lay in the middle of a complex magic circle, still being filled in at the edges by the two witches as the rest of their friends practiced by the dorm, far enough away as to not disturb their work. It was of increasing importance that they finished it at soon as possible. They knew their hospitalized enemy had escaped, and it was only a matter of time until he came back. They needed to be ready for that.

On this particular day the activities of both parties seemed to have attracted interest, though it certainly wasn't the first time it had happened over the holidays. Those not swooning—and some salivating—over the martial arts prowess of the two vampiresses and the black and white duet, were looking on at the artistic gibberish being drawn into the ground from the higher floors of the dorm, trying to find some rhyme or reason to the markings. It didn't help that it was in a language, or language_s_, that none of them understood. Whatever it was, it looked cool, and they all wanted to see what it would do. They knew they weren't welcome up close, but they were more than content to stand back and watch. Tsukune's girls were off-limits. Everyone knew that.

When a commotion happened over by the mock spars, that assessment was proved to be false. The reason why was seen easily enough, as the two approaching were obviously unfamiliar to the school. Instead of outrage, fear was the more common reaction, for the newcomers sported very familiar pale hair. While not even close to the bright silver they knew Tsukune and Moka's to be, their red, reptilian eyes and mass of Youki placed them within their species easily enough. It was the looks on their faces that earned their fear, unlike the kindness projected from the two at school, these ones were focused, their eyes daring any to draw near and meet their doom. The older one seemed apathetic enough, but they were no more willing to talk to him as they were his younger companion. It was easy to see where they were headed as well.

So focused were they on the new arrivals, they didn't notice Ruby hastily drawing a far smaller symbol beside herself and stabbing her wand into it, where it glowed with power for a short time before dissipating completely and was wiped from existence by her foot. Her visit _had_ served more than one purpose after all. The headmaster had no desire to lose all of his favors in one fell swoop.

Naturally, the tone of everything had changed with the arrival of the two vampires. Friends once fighting each other for the purpose of improvement were now standing beside them, their expressions mutually hardened, while Yukari and Ruby had redoubled their efforts at completing the circle.

Vincent scanned over the group lazily, silently wondering why his little brother had left out the fact that his mark had a significant group of friends. That they were training came as no surprise to him. He knew just as well as anyone that if a quantity was known to be stronger, one just had to improve until it wasn't. If he had indeed seen what he thought he saw, they weren't to be underestimated.

Unfortunately, his brother wasn't of the same mindset. "So, it looks like the zeroes were trying to get stronger to fight me off. I'm touched."

Quite frankly, Moka could care less about the returned Alexander. He was strong, there was no saying anything against that, but she was far more worried about the other vampire beside him. There was an apparent familial relation between them, but the older one was without a doubt stronger. She wouldn't allow her fear to show, she couldn't, not after what he had done to her.

"You? There's no way we'd do this because of _you_, to be totally honest I thought my dad would kill you. We're training in case someone _stronger_ shows up, like your friend over there. Brother, maybe?" she asked calmly. Smirks blossomed all around at the look that came over their previous opponent's face, but the older man simply nodded.

"Yes. My name is Vincent, Shuzen-san. It is an honor to make your acquaintance, even under these circumstances. I hope you can understand our situation here."

"Screw your 'situation'!" Kokoa snarled. "My sister's not going to be whored out to the lesser clans like some kind of business transaction!"

He sighed. "I understand, but everyone suffers if the agreement is not fulfilled. She has a responsibility to your family."

"And don't think that _you_ aren't part of something either! You _all_ have a part in your family, just as the assassin and the bargaining chip do! I wonder what will happen when _you_ are of age?" Alexander crowed, and delighted in the sudden pallor of Kokoa's complexion.

Vincent sighed again when he saw how hard their eyes had become at his brother's outburst. "A lesson to you, Alex: never try to put yourself above one when it will directly affect the _others_ that one is with."

The brother actually gulped when he saw the fierce expressions that had taken residence on his foes' faces.

"You're surprisingly calm for what you're about to try," Moka growled lowly, already in position in case either of them tried anything.

"I'm only here for a specific reason. You don't interest me at all I'm afraid, I've been happily mated for a few years now. I'm just here to ensure our family is given what it was promised."

"That makes you even more despicable!" Kurumu shouted angrily.

He shrugged. "That may be so."

Mizore's doll-like appearance was scrunched up with disgust as she clutched a freshly-made kunai. "You two sicken me, and anyone else that thinks like you." She just barely managed to keep from flinching when his red gaze regarded her, flickering from her features to the creation in her hand, and that was all he needed.

"This coming from one of a race that does indeed—how did she put it?—ah yes, 'whore out' its youths for fear of extinction. This is not an arranged marriage, pregnancy is not our goal; her mere attendance in our household is. For one of her status to serve something lower, that blow to her pride is more than you could know."

Kurumu had to physically restrain her partner from rushing him, not that she didn't want to just as much.

"So you have your choice," Alexander sneered. "Come quietly, or my brother and I will get rid of the rabble by force."

Eyes blazing, the black and white duet snarled, "Bring it on, _Alex-chan,_" in unison.

"With pleasure!"

"Alex, wait—!" Vincent tried, but it was too little, too late; the other vampire had already shot to his challengers.

That proved to be just as disastrous as he had feared, for though he had been impressively trained at home, Alex had yet to delve more than superficially into the realm of true conflict. It wasn't hard to get by just on a vampire's reputation, and with a show of force that most monsters would shrink from that reputation was generally well-earned. What escaped his notice in this instance was that _these_ monsters had been around two of the Shuzen sisters, they knew what to expect, and on a much grander scale. It was probably why the Snow Man had been able to fight him as long as he had, if the elder was to make any guesses.

Vincent couldn't even feel bad for his brother as the duet glided effortlessly through his initial strikes and when one spun low, the following blow to his stomach forced his face right down into the oncoming punch from the other, setting the unbalanced body up perfectly for a sweeping kick that knocked his legs right out from under him. Alexander had nothing to do but seethe as sharp fingers of crystalline liquid and long nails capable of destroying cement like nothing were held at his throat as he lay confused on the ground.

"You said something about zeroes the last time you were here too," Mizore murmured in hidden amusement. "We never got to show you how much we appreciated that."

"You know who we originally developed our techniques for?" Kurumu continued. When no response was forthcoming, she answered for him with a haughty smirk. "Moka. You, Alex-chan, are no Moka Akashiya."

They both only just noticed the danger in their peripheral vision in time to escape harm, as only seconds after Mizore had tackled Kurumu out of the way did a fierce kick ripple above their captive's body. It was with some concern then that they looked back, where Vincent stood helping his brother up.

"Foolish. Maybe if you had taken your time in the military when you were supposed to they wouldn't have gotten the upper hand so easily," the older brother said with a sigh. Taking another appraising glance of the two in front of them, the duo was shocked to find a hint of respect there. "You strike me as my commanding officers did, like true veterans compared to wet-behind-the-ears rookies. You've seen battle before; not petty schoolyard fights, but real life-threatening battle, haven't you?" It was said with no small sense of amazement. The two didn't relax from their stances, which answered that well enough. "Incredible. To think schoolchildren could be more battle-hardened than some vampires…"

"You get used to it," the blue-haired beauty hissed.

Her partner nodded. "Yeah, trouble seems to follow Tsukune wherever he goes." She couldn't help but smile at the irony of that statement. "Actually, we all seem to have that problem."

Moka had to wonder if it was sad that all she could do was shrug acquiescingly at the very real truth held there. "Just ask…well, everyone, I guess," she supplied honestly. "If Tsukune wasn't getting into some kind of mess by himself, one of us was getting him into one; usually me. Big surprise whose fault it is again this time." The group snickered, leaving the two males confused at the odd joke that was being shared among them.

"While I didn't anticipate something like this, I suppose it does make my presence here more worthwhile," Vincent pondered aloud. Motioning to his brother, the elder vampire assumed a relaxed stance that instantly put everyone on edge. "Come, Alexander, I haven't had a fight like this in a long time. Those two deserve our immediate attention. Once they're out, we'll see if they're willing to listen to reason."

Kokoa snorted. "Too bad they're all crazy then. I must be too, since I'm helping them! Oh well, what're you gonna do, huh?" she snarked rhetorically as Kou took the form of a larger-than-life hammer that would have made the Mario brothers proud.

When happened next was something no witness to the event would ever forget.

The two males burst into motion at the same time, rushing towards the infamous black and white duet with deadly aim. Unconcerned, they responded very similar to how they had the first time, weaving through the outrageously fast strikes with precision brought on from fights with Outer Moka _and_ Kokoa. Admittedly they would have preferred Inner Moka, but that option had been cut off to them at the time, and besides, they remembered what Tsukune looked like after his 'sparring' sessions with the vampiress. There was improvement, then there was a death-wish.

It was unnatural, the way four bodies could fight in such close quarters so fluidly. Alexander might be lacking in many areas, but when it came to fighting alongside his brother the familiarity was evident, and Vincent made up for every weakness his younger sibling displayed. It was only their lithe feminine forms and grace that saved the two women facing them from painful ends, but their power wasn't to be scoffed at either. Together they were more than enough to blast oncoming blows away from them with only minor discomfort, and their ever-changing form enabled them to spin away from attacks that would have incapacitated one of them in an instant.

To those watching, it could have been mistaken for choreography. Side by side, the two duos threw their limbs at each other in smooth sequence that was just as smoothly batted away in equal yet opposite actions that flowed from one attack to the next without hesitation. A high kick from Alexander was evaded in a low backwards lean by Mizore, and Kurumu had ducked without prompting and spun to her partner's back, supporting the otherwise impossible tilt and setting her up magnificently to bring up both feet and launch them unimpeded into Alex's unguarded stomach. The unexpected double-dropkick forced his emission from the immediate fight but left them open, or at least it would have, had the ice maiden not rolled off the succubus' back and pulled her into the same action, yanking her out of the path of Vincent's vicious axe-kick and allowing them to return to form before he responded.

When Alex tried to return he was cut off by the arrival of a giant hammer, which was spun with ease into a side-blow that would have surely knocked him into the skyline had he not evaded at the last second. Like everything else that was merely a set-up, for when his vision cleared of the heavy metal, Moka was already in front of him, sending blows that numbed body parts with frightening accuracy. Move through one and a hammer was there to greet him, dodge that and the unattended opponent was in position for a painful counterattack anyway. The pace was positively relentless, more so than even his fight against the boy that had later released _her_ seal.

Things were going good, far better than any of the group could have hoped for. They had really improved, and the fruits of their effort were showing. It only took one wrong move for everything to take a terrible turn.

In a stroke of genius, Alexander landed a debilitating strike to Moka's gut and sent the sealed vampiress to her knees, coughing blood and saliva. At the same time Kokoa was preparing for another strike, and when she saw the state of her sister, naturally, she saw red. That anger, combined with the lack of distraction Moka usually gave to permit the time needed for her strikes, telegraphed everything much too handily to the lesser vampire. Jumping at the downturn of her swing, he swatted the weapon off-course and sent the teen sprawling for balance against the sudden shock of unequal weight distribution. A devastating chop fueled by vampiric power and gravity hit the unprepared girl in her right collarbone as he descended, where a sickening _snap_ proceeded to send burning pain through her dominant arm and forced her to drop her Familiar. This left her completely defenseless against his next attack, which threw her through the air to land in agony by her sister.

The sounds drew the attention of Mizore and Kurumu just for a moment, but needless to say, Vincent took advantage of that. With five strikes to the corners of her torso and one just below her sternum, far more precise than Alexander's and lacking none of the power, Mizore suddenly found herself writhing on the ground and gasping for air. Though powerful by herself, the enraged Kurumu didn't think of using any of her other talents and was soon by her partner.

Rubbing more than a few wounds of their own and hurting more than they would care to admit, the two brothers reunited, for all accounts victorious.

"You two put up an impressive fight, much harder than any monster I've faced in the past. If you hadn't been distracted, I'm sure you would have beaten me," Vincent complimented to the duet glaring at him from their place on the ground.

"Enough!" Alexander growled, newly annoyed at being caused so much pain by what he believed to be weaker beings for a second time. "They're done, let's grab my prize."

Which they would have done too, had an explosion of eerie light from behind not earned their notice in a rather spectacular fashion. They both spun around, ready for anything, or so they had thought. Seeing two witches kneeling before an inordinately complex magical diagram with their hands on the edges obviously wasn't in that realm of expectation, and they could do nothing but squint against the blinding light radiated by the circle noticeably crackling with power and focused inward by winged tarot cards. Their fear escalated as the light likewise grew, and they shielded their eyes when with a frightening crescendo, everything was enveloped in that multicolored array.

When nothing happened in the moments after, both brothers hesitantly opened their eyes to see they were still very much alive, and had not been damaged by it at all.

"What the…?" the younger of the two muttered in shock.

"I don't care if you _are_ vampires, we won't allow you to harm our family anymore!" a voice called from behind them, and again they spun, this time to find the two witches standing protectively in front of Moka, their wands drawn. Had they bothered to make note of their earlier attire they would have detected the new bracelet being worn by each of them, Ruby's on her left wrist and Yukari's on her right.

"That's right ~desu!" Yukari agreed vehemently.

To her ire, Alexander began to laugh. "Oh this is just too much! The rest of your little friends are already beaten and you think two half-breeds are going to be able to hold _us_ off? This is the part when you realize you're beaten and bow out before I kill you!"

Expressions steeled with resolve, the two sorceresses stood their ground. The others behind them couldn't even bring themselves to plead against it. They had made a vow. They would protect each other until the very end if need be. They would fight, even if they had no hope.

Snarling with rage, the vampire began to advance, only to stop mid-motion when a shadow fell over the entire area. He wasn't the only one; _everyone_ looked up in confusion to see dark thunderclouds roiling into existence above where before there had been only clear blue sky. Thunder clapped angrily as the formerly nonexistent breeze chilled around them, warping the summer day into unnatural winter while fog formed in the cooling. Frost crawled like a harbinger of death over the ground as the temperature continued to drop and the mist gained strength, coating grass and dirt alike before swarming up the trees, distorting their shape with icicles and snow into bizarrely beautiful perversions of their past selves. With breath now visible in the air, everyone of course looked to Mizore, who herself was looking around with wonder all over her features. She _could_, but in this case she _hadn't_.

"No, this is the part when the hero returns triumphant."

Every eye shot to the source of the sound: a body walking out of the haze with another right beside it, tall and proud. A man stepped into view first, his hands made of the very thing covering the landscape, unbothered by the cold. With torn pants fashioned into crude shorts on his legs and a worn black shirt conspicuously absent of both its sleeves over his muscled chest, he looked the image of squalor, yet in his fierce hazel eyes burned a bearing more dignified than any king, a pride worthy of one who had tamed a jungle, and tamed itself by a humility intrinsic even deeper in his being.

A bronze-skinned young woman moved alongside him, her slim figure hidden under clothes many times too large for her. White hair formed in jagged spikes layered down her head and fell down her back, swaying with each step she took, and under her equally white eyebrows stood platinum eyes smoldering with hatred. As her fingers flexed, ivory nails sharpened into claws glinted with malicious intent, eager for blood.

Tsukune Aono had come home, and he was _not_ happy.

"Now, let me show you why the level one boss never shows up in level two…"

.

V^^^V

.

**Author's Notes:** IMPORTANT!

Well, I had planned on making a big show of these notes with lots of gibberish resulting from hitting my head on my keyboard, but I decided not to do that, LOL. Anyways, after a long wait, the next chapter is finally out. To quote what I said to someone earlier, the reason is: sick, sick sick sick SICK SICK SICK! UGH, and of course, work, work, more work, getting ready for training for work, training for work, and what I've deemed the Busiest Damn Week Of My #$%$ing Life. So yeah, that, coupled with my disgust at the newest chapter of the manga in my mind, was what has been responsible for the long wait. That, and of course the length. Twenty-eight pages not including the notes!

About the manga, I hope to God that it's just because Moka's mother is sealed as well, because if the author went and did something stupid like "seal herself or her memories in her daughter's rosary to hide" or something like that I'm going to swear off the manga until the damn thing is complete and not allow it to sway my take of things at all. But really, that's what I get for trusting *shiver* an anime so inherently skewed from the manga as R+V. It occurred to me as soon as I read it that in one of the earliest chapters of the original manga Moka made mention of her mother trying to seal her intense youki, but of course I wished, beyond hope so it seems, that we'll actually be given another male character that we don't want to strangle. If we do, it'll be because he's a respectable antagonist like Hokuto, not another insert.

On to what's really important. I'll probably change some of my earlier chapters to parallel what I can about that while keeping her father and family as the main antagonists, but at least it looks like I was right about the Shuzen thing, since Little Moka specifically said something to the effect of the 'land belonging to the Shuzen family'. It makes me wonder where Moka got the 'Akashiya' name then, unless it's merely in remembrance of her mother and a reminder she doesn't want to associate with the main part of her family anymore. I'm just worried the name stems from the whole "mother sealing herself in her" thing, and that makes me cringe. Of course, there's always the possibility Moka's dad isn't the bigshot we all think he is, but if that's the case that would be the biggest disappointment of all.

So yeah, hopefully sometime soon I'll get around to changing those earlier chapters in a few subtle ways, because I like to keep my story grounded in as much canon as I can. This will mean some minor changes, but don't worry, nothing too much and it will work with what I've written.

Off that topic, the thing I can't understand is why people still comment on the Tsukune's transformation into a vampire aspect of he and Moka's relationship. While I could add more in later chapters, which I probably will, I thought I should say something here just in case it wasn't gotten across after some of the earliest chapters. Moka loved Tsukune before he was a vampire, she admitted it. They're both young adults, _teenagers_, that have been through things no ordinary couple would be expected to endure and that love each other—and others so it seems—so much they're still together. Moka's rejection pushed Tsukune to a kind of insanity, one I'm sure most people who read this who've been in a newly-broken relationship can relate to. The only option in his mind was to try his luck.

Moka, _both_ Mokas, weren't going unaffected by her choice either, I tried to show that as much as possible. If things had continued the way they were, which I had considered, she would have eventually broken, just like she stated at the end of their fight. His transformation took her to new depths of despair and forced her to reassess what she could do. She couldn't very well just ask him for forgiveness, her pride wouldn't let her now that he was the same as her, just as I had Ruby state for you all. They didn't _need_ to fight, she _wanted_ to fight, if not just to punish herself for what she had done. While her pride didn't want her to lose, the second she admitted he was her equal she _broke_, just like he had before her, and their love was able to pick up the pieces. She _knew_ she didn't deserve it after what she had done, but he didn't care. They didn't _delude_ themselves into anything, and I'm sorry, but I can't stand that take of what I've written.

I don't know if that's a very good explanation, but I think Moka was just as worthy to be with him. I know I wrote her as callous in the earlier chapters, but that was for a reason, one I thought everyone had understood over the ensuing chapters. That's that basically.

Anywho, THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR THE REVIEWS! I love your input, and your encouragement constantly prompts me to write better for your sakes. Again, I'm sorry about the wait, but I hope the length and quality make up for it, I know just as much as you do what it's like to wait for an update. You guys are awesome, and I look forward to hearing what you think!


	18. Pt I: Sow The Wind

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Rosario+Vampire, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story. Simple enough, ne? Just don't copy from this story and we're all good!

…

**Sow The Wind…**

.

Things had been going well for the most part. Their last couple of weeks had been spent with them closer than ever, adapting their ways to what best suited their combined tactics. Exploration took new precedence as they sought new creatures and scenery, new opponents to test their growing style against, and more than once did the two find themselves curled up under the stars, sleeping far from their mountain sanctuary. Tsukune was constantly awed by Rei's sheer size in her true form, and even if the nights _could_ have been colder than temperate—which they never were—he never felt anything but warm and safe resting by her side. It was the days when she chose _him_ to be _her_ source of heat that took some getting used to. The first time he had felt her human body cuddle up against him he had nearly had a heart attack, vampirism be damned.

It was luck that had them by their cave as the days remaining dwindled, just to be in a set position when Ruby—and likely the others—came to pick them up. For all they knew they were on their last day every day, what with no foolproof way to tell what day it was anymore. There was one thing that gave them comfort on that front, and that was the runic circle that had been branded into the inside of Tsukune's leather book-cover. Ruby had explained its purpose as something akin to an emergency beacon. If she ever needed to call them back earlier than their assigned time, she would use it. Tsukune's peace of mind was greatly increased, knowing the headmaster had taken him seriously in regards to his threat. Why, he couldn't honestly say, but he had guessed the board chairman wouldn't like having his favorite go-fer taken away, and apparently he'd been right.

That didn't stop his blood from freezing in his veins when his book started flashing with wild light.

He and Rei had locked gazes for just one, solitary second before they were moving. For reasons unknown to him she had instantly thrown him one of the few shirts that had survived their time together, but he suspected it was because of their return to civilization. Moments after he had donned the garment, he was holding what she wore as shorts and her shirt as well, lest they be reduced to scraps when she transformed, which she did with no hesitation. In hardly any time at all they were in front of the familiar stone door and Rei was back to human form so she could fit through the walkway on the other side. Form was of no consequence, their rage was _palpable._

Magic was thick in the air as they made their way to their treasures, the elements and atmosphere forcibly changed under demonic ability and natural ties. He could feel Rei's influence in the clouds above, the storm of her anger mingled with his. Any humidity in the warm summer day responded to him alone, sweeping out like a wave when he saw the reason for their return. The words he heard as they approached infuriated him, so he chose to respond with those of his own to get their attention.

He would _not_ be ignored.

He would _not_ allow them to do any more harm to his loved ones.

This was what he had trained for, what he had put himself through _hell_ for.

It was time to show them the results.

…

"No, this is the part when the hero returns triumphant."

Every eye shot to the source of the sound: a body walking out of the haze with another right beside it, tall and proud. A man stepped into view first, his hands made of the very thing covering the landscape, unbothered by the cold. With torn pants fashioned into crude shorts on his legs and a worn black shirt conspicuously absent of both its sleeves over his muscled chest, he looked the image of squalor, yet in his fierce hazel eyes burned a bearing more dignified than any king, a pride worthy of one who had tamed a jungle, and tamed itself by a humility intrinsic even deeper in his being.

A bronze-skinned young woman moved alongside him, her slim figure hidden under clothes many times too large for her. White hair formed in jagged spikes layered down her head and fell down her back, swaying with each step she took, and under her equally white eyebrows stood platinum eyes smoldering with hatred. As her fingers flexed, ivory nails sharpened into claws glinted with malicious intent, eager for blood.

Tsukune Aono had come home, and he was _not_ happy.

"Now, let me show you why the level one boss never shows up in level two…"

…

It was one of those instances where something so unexpected happened that for a few moments absolutely nothing was done in response. Every eye was trained on the pair that had walked through the fog, but no one moved, or spoke, or blinked. They all _knew_ something had happened, but for some reason or another, their brains refused to respond to the stimulus. When they had time to think about later, the students that witnessed that day would later come to understand that they had been paralyzed in fear.

They had all seen Tsukune Aono angry. Once thought impossible, the silver-haired goddess he had been forced to fight months ago had evoked such anger in him that they all knew they would never forget it. They had seen Tsukune Aono angry, but quite obviously they had never seen Tsukune Aono _angry_. Hidden under a veneer of annoyed indifference, it was the young man's honey brown eyes that testified to the true fury of the vampire underneath. Even a good distance away, the ones safely nestled on the higher floors of the dorm, watching from above, could _see_ what the normally kind and soft-spoken teen thought of the current situation.

On the other end of things, the eldest vampire among the gathering as a whole was taking the time to examine the person who had managed to hold off his little brother once upon a time, brutal injuries incurred during which notwithstanding. Before their arrival Alex had told of his ordeal in as much detail as he was willing to part with, and as much as it disappointed him to think so, his brother had been grossly biased in his reiteration of events, or at least those where the 'boy' was concerned. Much of it could be explained away to pride, and just as much of the rest to a lack of experience in the field of sizing a true opponent up; nonetheless, what he was looking at was a far cry from a mere 'boy.'

He was looking at a fighter, plain and simple. Just from his body alone he could see a physique no vampire would be opposed to having, and while blood purity was rarely argued over anymore and Moka should have been free to choose whosoever she wanted, as one of the true blood-born Shuzen heirs he had a difficult time believing she had chosen from anything other than her own race. A mate was one thing, a _blood_-mate was another. Still, he couldn't really fault her on her choice. This was no boy standing in front of him, this was a young man who had worked for his strength every step of the way. He had spied no physical scars on any of the women they had fought, and he doubted he would find any even under their clothes. It was hard to scar full Youkai, even witches, and all but impossible on vampires, but on the hazel-eyed youth he could see small marks every now and then, and from the looks of things some even continued under the sleeveless shirt. This was someone who had endured great pain and kept fighting. This was another war veteran to his brother's bar brawler. Alex had the pride and power, only lacked the experience. Truly, even watching the Shuzen sisters at their younger ages was humbling. Experience was one thing the ragged student in front of him clearly had no lack of.

The girl at his side was no more confusing than the others had been by Moka. It figured there were more variables he hadn't been told of before they arrived. What was more confusing was the look in _her_ eyes. He could see it on the man she stood beside, but to see it on a girl at least five years his junior was…unexpected. She had the look any vampire would recognize in an instant: that of a true apex predator. She _knew_ she was dangerous, _knew_ there were things beneath her, and _knew_ when her wrath was evoked there would be casualties. It was a look that wouldn't have been out of place on a vampire years younger, but he could see no cross anywhere on her person, and despite her blindingly white hair her polished silver eyes were far different from a vampire's hereditary red, though no less unnatural, he had to admit.

Vincent's blood quickened within him, the deep, instinctual trait of battle at the forefront of these new developments. The others had been admirable, he would not do them the disservice of thinking otherwise, but now he was looking at two real threats. If the environmental anomalies around them didn't prove that, this reaction inside him more than made up for them. Two vampires against an ice man and an unknown did seem a bit unfair, but he was sure they were up to the challenge.

Then, quick as the lightning frolicking in the sky, the man opposite him tensed, and worse, his expression changed. After an experimental sniff his eyes had moved past them, over to where he knew their previous victims lay recovering; the reward behind the obstacles, so to speak. If the man had been angry before, the way his lips curled up into a definite snarl proved that had been ascended. That look sent a delicious shiver through Vincent's body as the bloodlust tightened his muscles, honed his reflexes, all in wait of the explosion of violence he knew would happen. Cautioning a small glance back, even the ever-prideful vampire's blood had the thought to chill when he discovered that same red substance dribbling from the sides of Moka's mouth. He knew, somehow in his mind he just _knew_, that that seemingly innocent smell moments earlier had alerted the other man to its presence. He also knew, with that same feeling as before, that the rules had just been changed.

"Tsukki!"

The alarmed cry brought his focus back where it should be, but all he saw was the bronze-skinned girl reaching out as if to catch someone before the white mist around them all coalesced and surged forward like a living entity. His eyes darted down the path of that reach while they could, saw what was happening, and his fist lashed out in the same heartbeat. It was obvious what was about to take place, even if his view of the haggard man running towards Alexander had been reduced to glimpses through swirling white soup. The attack coming in from the side would ensure he never made it there, but to Vincent's shock, his fist met an image and the image _shattered_. Dazed and confused at that conclusion, he regained himself when the ground trembled under his feet and a great shockwave cleared out all the mist in a concussive blast of wind. Clear to see once more, mirrors of ice were revealed to litter the expanse, all at different angles. What was more, off to the side Alex was pinned to a tree by a frozen hand around his pale neck.

Vincent found himself conflicted between annoyance at the ruse and joy at the realization that his earlier thoughts had indeed proven themselves correct. It took a special kind of person to be able to cause the kind of quiet that had settled upon the wild man's entrance, but to do it again so quickly…even the eldest amongst them had to give him credit. It had been a long time since he had seen something similar. It was the kind of thing only select people could do, and since he was glad none of them were there, it told of what that meant. Finally, his blood was feeling _alive_ again! Then he spoke, and when he did he cemented that ideal.

"Do you remember what I told you last time we met, Alex-chan?"

Few spines were left untouched by the ice as inherent in his words as it was in his arms. If Vincent didn't know Alexander could break the grip at any time he might have been affected too, as it was, he only grinned wider. It didn't take long for that to come about after the taunted threat.

Forgoing any sense of accuracy, Alex struck out in rage. Normally this would have resulted in broken bones and air time, however he hadn't counted on being let go just before he hit, thus allowing Tsukune to spin himself out of the way and into the delivery for a hard punch that caught Alexander mercilessly in the side. As he lashed out blindly at the source of his pain, the brown-eyed man didn't have the slightest bit of difficulty maneuvering through the blows. In fact, if anything they made it easier for him to bend him over with a solid strike to the gut that had Alex tasting bile and coughing not unlike how he had made Moka minutes prior. He was saved any further suffering when Vincent intervened out of the blue, landing a terrible blow of his own on the icy enforcer that rocketed him back whence he came. The young girl he had come with caught him with her body, gripping him securely under his arms while shockingly staying upright at the same time. That might not have been all that impressive had she not been pushed back several meters by the impact.

Clad in semi-formal wear that probably cost more than the other man's entire wardrobe combined, Vincent straightened proudly as Alexander dusted himself off and wiped the saliva from his chin. That sight alone would intimidate a lesser man, but after seeing what he had so far Vincent knew the ice manipulator was anything but. Turning to the admittedly remarkable student, he graced him with a deceptively amiable grin. "Tut tut, such a bad foot to start out on, isn't it? Perhaps we would better begin with an introduction. I would assume you are the blood-mate of which I've heard so much about?"

To his surprise, the other two ignored him completely.

As soon as Tsukune regained his bearings, he found his footing and concentrated on blocking out the pain as his body moved to repair itself accordingly. Rather, that's what he _was_ doing when Rei smacked him upside the head with no small amount of force. That quickly overrode all priorities as demanding immediate attention. "Ow! Rei-chan, what'd you do that for!" he whined, all but forgetting the presence of the two enemy Youkai looking on at the exchange strangely.

"Do you wish me to start at the top of all the utterly _incompetent_ things you thought to be wise in the time gone yonder?" she replied irritably. Her earlier anger had been dissolved in a look of frustration more suited for a woman well beyond her years as she ran a hand down her face. "Admirable, Tsukki, for sure: ill-suited at best, but admirable regardless. Has your earlier encounter escaped you so entirely you thought rushing not one, but _two_ vampires unaided would end well?"

Tsukune bit back a snort as he glanced over at the dumbfounded duo, but reluctantly accepted the truth of that statement. "They're hurt! They _hurt_ them! I can _smell_ their pain!"

Rei grimaced. Saying she couldn't smell the less-than-perfect condition the bodies of their treasures were in would be a blatant lie, yet she couldn't condone his mutually blatant stupidity. "Then make them pay," she responded darkly. "Fall not back into actions we have worked to grow out of. Show them what you have become, show them all what _we_ have become."

Warm brown eyes turned flinty and a smile was shared between them, one almost frightening in its similarity.

A sigh brought their attention over to the grey-haired vampires still standing like gods among men in the center of the clearing spread out in front of the women's dorms. "As amusing as this is, I believe we were in the middle of something?" the older one reminded with a small smirk.

The Blood Sage returned that arrogant smirk with ease, which clearly shocked most of the women around them. "Really? I thought we should give your…wait just a minute here! Who on earth are _you_ anyways! My problem s'with the moron beside you!"

"As I was saying before you decided to have your little huddle over there, introductions are in order. Since you obviously had trouble understanding that, allow me to begin. You may call me Vincent, the elder brother of young Alexander here." If he noticed the glare said younger brother gave him at that, he didn't let it show. "And you are?"

It was hard to miss the change in Tsukune's posture at the announcement, most noticeable in the way his hair literally _froze in place_. Staring out from under crystal bangs, dark gold eyes seethed with cold vengeance. "In other words," he hissed, "you're part of my problem."

"You _are_ the problem!" Alex spat. "_We_ are the solution!"

Thunder cracked so viciously it drowned out every conceivable noise, as if the entirety of the storm had been condensed into a single bellow of, _'SILENCE!'_

Two witches were left shivering in terror, not from the vampires that had chosen to ignore them, but from that lone word vibrated into their bones with the full force of Nature's fury behind it. Unsurprisingly, Rei's face was the definition of that fury, yet though her mouth was open the only sounds came from the clouds. The others were simply in awe of the display, with the knowledge deep down that it was _because_ of something and not just random chance. The two it had been directed at may not have been able to understand what was being said, but they understood the intent all too well.

From above the thunder, the tremendous might of the menacing tempest raging above, it wasn't a shout that was heard, nor even a battle-cry, instead, it was a whisper…a chilled, mellifluous undertone that crawled through their ears like a sickness, withering all in its path until it gripped their hearts in its deathly clutches and _twisted_.

"…You asked me who I am…"

It came from everywhere and nowhere; down their necks, up their spines, caressed into ears with the softness of a summer breeze and the bite of a winter nor'easter. Students up on the third floor of the dorm were shivering and looking around in alarm, desperately searching for the source of the voice. Then they realized that Tsukune Aono had disappeared.

"…If I had to be a man of ice and snow to love a woman of hailstorms and blizzards, I would…"

Mizore gasped tightly as she felt a hand as cold as she was gently stroke the side of her face, taking all pain she might have still felt with it when it departed.

"…If I had to be a man of smoke and mirrors to love a woman of true charms and illusions, I would…"

Kurumu stiffened beside her partner when a soft touch lovingly trailed down her arm and eased her aggrieved breathing.

"…If I had to be the result of the most unholy union imaginable to love women of pure magic and witchcraft, so my blood even remotely _resembled_ the beauty that flows through their veins, I would…"

Yukari and Ruby shuddered as tender fingers massaged a hand each before moving up to their bracelets, where the metal underneath the leather suddenly glowed eerily with new life.

"…If I had to be everything I ever was and everything I ever despised to love a woman of emeralds and rubies, pacifism and war, two hearts that beat in one, _I would_…"

Both Inner and Outer Moka blinked back tears as a phantom sensation brushed over her lips, down her neck and to her silver rosary, erasing her injuries in the process.

"…If I had to give my all to protect the people important to me, _I would…!_"

Kokoa—still in agony after pushing her collarbone back into place so it could heal properly—wheezed at the imprevisible feeling of someone rubbing her shoulder, and before she could be adequately angry at the disallowed touching of her person, she noticed she felt nothing, not even the slightest twinge of discomfort.

Now distinctly strained, the voice snarled, "If I had to fight the strongest vampire there was to keep the place I've come to love safe, then _so be it!_"

Just like that, Vincent and Alex were sent to their knees as invisible fists crushed into their stomachs, and before their disbelieving eyes their foe reappeared from thin air, glaring down with eyes that promised pain. Devoid of any transformation it was possibly more unsettling than anything they had seen previously, for he looked more dangerous than ever.

"My name is Tsukune Aono, and I have to confess, I'm going to enjoy this far, _far_ more than I should."

For a precious few seconds, a pin striking ground would have been equivalent to a bomb.

The difference between the two brothers had never been as striking as in the reaction to their situation. Tsukune knew full well the kind of debilitating weakness that overcame a body were enough force to be put into a blow to a specific part of the body, an unprepared gut among the worst. There was no sign of that in Alex as a snarl of indignant wrath spilled from between exposed teeth and extended fangs, backed by the full weight of his charge forward, his target clear.

Paradoxically, disregarding the pain apparent in his breathing, Vincent's expression was otherwise unreadable with the many things passing through his eyes as once. It was hard to pinpoint exactly what the overall emotion was, but the dumbstruck sense of excitement was probably the easiest to understand. He made no move to attack, but that wasn't to say Rei took her eyes off of him for one moment. Her partner had done what he did for a reason; as much as it might annoy her, he didn't want her to join him just yet. So she stood where she was, steadfastly holding a battle of wills, all the while praying for him to move so she would have a reason to begin their dance.

For the group of six formerly incapacitated, that was inconsequential. For them, the world stopped as suitor closed in on blood-mate, murder in mind. They expected Tsukune to do _something_; transform, move, _acknowledge_ the fact that he was being threatened in the first place! Tsukune did none of these things. When the fist bearing death was but scant inches from his nose, Tsukune _smirked_. He moved in a blink, swerving out low from the attack's path on the ball of his bare foot while moving his entire body into momentum for his other, which launched up into Alex's chin in a display of finesse and power Inner Moka would have been proud of. Though none but one could see her, she certainly was.

The lesser vampire stumbled back drunkenly, disoriented from the unanticipated preemptive counterattack that would have broken the jaw of any other monster. Tsukune used this advantage to its fullest. Ever since he had seen the state of his family, his _mates_, the rage seeded deep in his blood had been howling for vengeance. Alexander may have been trying to be intimidating in his vicious snarl of challenge, unfortunately for him all it did was push that bloodlust higher. He had no idea he was challenging one of his own race, no idea that his foe's instincts would recognize that snarl for what it was, and no idea what it was he was about to face. It had been Tsukune's primary goal in Paradise to overcome that destructive yearning, yet at the same time he had known he needed it, and was willing to use it. There was no slow bleed, some inane fantasy that dictated there must be a medium before there was a hard; the sealed vampire allowed that rage into his system the only way that was possible: immersion.

A snarl no weaker, and certainly no less vicious, than Alex's own ripped through the droning thunder, and in the temporary weakness he had dealt, Tsukune proceeded to lay into his opponent with fearsome enthusiasm. Perhaps it would have been better if it had been under a fierce charge, some gratuitous display of velocity that made the blows raining down on the arrogant man indiscernible from one to the next. What happened was very different. If ever there was an expression to convey animosity, Tsukune's eyes held every one, and at a slow, steady walk, he dismantled the other vampire.

Alexander found himself in something akin to an out-of-body experience as he watched himself get pounded every which way. He felt the pain, felt the force push his body in the decreed direction, but in his shock he couldn't process any of it. A punch to his right cheek was quickly followed by one to his left, which flowed into yet another strike to his stomach, and that to a chop to the now-exposed back of his neck, summarily sending him to his knees only to be blasted backwards by the merciless kick to his face once there.

Needless to say, other than the thunder, no one else made a sound, likely because they couldn't even if they wanted to. They were entranced, disgusted, awed, and terrified all at once, but they couldn't tear their eyes away.

When the daze finally left Alex he wasted no time in catching the next punch set against him, stunning all those present anew, but also cluing him in to the extraordinary—almost _impossible_—amount of force the Snow-Man had been putting into his attacks. While before a grapple between them would have been unequivocally one-sided, now his arm was nearly trembling just at the effort it was taking to hold him off.

"What in the hells have you been doing this past month?" he asked before he could stop himself. At full strength as he had been, his healing factor was making short work of his injuries, but he could still taste the blood on his tongue when he spoke.

After a few attempts to get back his hand, with the result being both held captive, Tsukune settled on glaring at him…before promptly smashing his forehead into Alexander's face. The lesser vampire released him immediately in favor of clutching at the spewing faucet of blood in the form of his broken nose, shouting curses all the while.

"You're done asking questions," Tsukune hissed with finality, though he might as well have roared from the way everyone flinched at the sound of his voice again. "I told you before I wouldn't have you even breathe the same _air_ as her, so of course you have to come back and not only _assault_ her again, but everyone else I care about! The only thing you'll be getting from me is another one-way trip back to wherever it is you came from!" A hand twined with his, and he looked down to see Rei standing beside him proudly. "Okay, the only thing you'll be getting from _us_," he amended.

Alex glared at him rather than make a fool of himself by talking before his nose healed enough to not impede his speech. That became unnecessary when another voice chose to rise up in its stead.

"A warning worth heeding by any account, certainly, with the power at your disposal, young iceling, even favoring your right side as you are," Vincent ceded graciously, but his eyes sparkled with intentions anything but. "However, what you failed to consider is my brother's past defeat. You seem to think he bowed to his pride and sought my assistance to deal with the surely powerful Shuzen-san, should she awaken under duress, no?"

The tone, more than the words themselves, shook the confidence his bloodlust had imbued, and the fledgling vampire felt his blood turn cold for a much different reason. Only Rei's secure hold on his hand kept him from giving in to that fear, and he hardened his features defiantly. "I didn't say I made any assumptions. Actually, you might remember I didn't even notice you."

The older man shrugged. "Yes; interesting, that. We come to find these women sparring, quite admirably, might I add, and yet somehow, just when they stand on their last leg of defense, you appear out of nowhere. Now one might think this coincidence, but from what Alexander tells me, you have the power to awaken the real Moka Shuzen. I would dare to suggest you know her better than most any could claim, so tell me this: if I'm weak enough to be overlooked completely in even _your_ eyes, what good would I be against a vampiress feared among her own _family?_"

Connecting the clues didn't take long. He wished it had. Sometimes, clarity was a terrible thing. "You weren't here for Moka in the fir—!" The sudden kick to his midsection cut off his revelation and launched him into one of the trees frozen upon his entrance, and had Rei not stumbled back at the sudden jolt of him being torn from her grip, she might have been in a position to better protect herself. Sadly, she wasn't. Sent flying by a backhand that whipped her head to the side, the disguised dragon was given a painful introduction into why vampires were one of, if not the most, feared Youkai of the current time.

"Very astute, Tsukune Aono. The only reason we were forced into combat at all was because I wasn't told of the other high-level Youkai she kept company with. I expected the only resistance to be _you_. She may be nigh undefeatable unsealed, but take that opportunity away and…well, I'm sure you get the idea. Of course, sense dictates that our battle was far from silent, but judging from your appearance I hesitate to think you were anywhere _near_ here. How then, did you show up like you did? I don't claim to know everything about the finer details of an honest and true blood-mate, but when I put everything into perspective, another possibility reveals itself."

Even as Tsukune and Rei strained out of their disgraceful positions, something told them they weren't going to like what conclusion he had come to.

"You can release her seal, you know when she's in danger, where she is, and your own life means little next to hers. Forgive me if I'm wrong, but there seems to be little difference between a blood-mate…and a _Familiar._ A clever ruse, no doubt, but there is still the matter of certain obligations to fulfill."

That insult went beyond anything anyone either behind or before the vampire had been ready for.

The storm stilled as Tsukune and the _real_ Familiar in attendance rose to their feet, silent as Death. Dark clouds churned in agitation above, but more disturbing was the utter _lack_ of emotion on the faces hidden beneath brown and white hair respectively. That did nothing to describe what was going on _within._ The blood he had come to inherit bubbled inside him as the small amount of pride he _did_ hold on to was affronted in one of the worst ways. Vincent had scoffed at everything he had done to find his place, and that was something _not_ acceptable!

Across from them, no one had ever seen Moka Akashiya so enraged. She was positively _shaking_, and Kokoa wasn't the only one that flinched back upon seeing her full fangs bared to the air. The bloodlust she radiated even _sealed_ was nothing short of terrifying. No one doubted they were, quite literally, in the Eye of the Storm, the only place of solace before the consuming destruction all around imploded inwards. The only question was how long that would take.

Sparks flashed in the ripe atmosphere, a shallow precursor of the true danger to come, and when the next roll of thunder sounded many of the vacationing students took shelter in the rooms nearest them, especially those on the higher floors. Some braved the weather, and it was only those that heard what happened next.

Calmly extracting the small tome from his back pocket, Tsukune didn't even bother opening it, nor did he raise his head to look at his targets. "Meo accito auscultet, Fulmen! Pluvia in meus hostilis quod excipio! Redimio Fulmen!" _Heed my call, lightning! Rain on my enemy and capture! Binding Lightning!_

Eyes went wide as the storm roared its response, and from the skies bolts of electricity clapped into existence. With a blinding flash a cage of power had formed around the two vampires facing him, effectively imprisoning them in a dome of incalculable current. It was wide, but they didn't dare move from where they were. Lightning's arcing capability was a very real danger, and they both knew it. Neither trapped could do anything but stare.

"That's an interesting theory," said the whisper from his downturned face, nearly unheard, "but like me, you forgot to take something into consideration." There wasn't a single eye that didn't follow him as he and Rei noiselessly walked by his captives and straight to his family and friends, where he turned to show the brothers just how powerless they were in the situation. "You couldn't see me, and while you couldn't I got close enough to _touch_ every one of the people you hurt. So now _you_ tell _me_: if I was close enough to _touch_ them, why in the _hell_ wouldn't I have removed Moka's rosary?"

Stunned silence answered him.

He scoffed in disgust before spinning back around and offering the equally stunned vampiress his hand. When she stood before him, the question was clear in her eyes. "Moka, do you trust me?" he asked gravely.

She threw her arms around his neck and kissed him so fiercely it was like nothing else existed. As she pulled away she couldn't resist one last peck, then finally she simply smiled. "Of course, Tsukune. Always." His hand enclosed over her rosary, but rather than be surprised she only closed her eyes and awaited the inevitable.

The explosion of Youki from her subsequent release had both Vincent and Alex fighting off fear, and when the unsealed vampiress took her place they knew they had failed. At least, that's what they thought. To their unmitigated astonishment, Tsukune repeated the question.

"Moka, do you trust me?"

She made a point of stepping out beside him so she could be seen fully by those in the magic prison, pinning them further in place under her rich ruby gaze and hiss of contempt. Elaborately flicking her hair to the side so there could be no mistake, the powerful heiress unashamedly exposed her alabaster neck to her mate. The harsh gasps from the cage told of just how well the action was understood. Moka smirked victoriously as she lovingly drew her hand down the side of his face.

"_**Until the end of time. Shall we dispose of this filth that dare question us?"**_ Of all the reactions she hadn't expected him to look pained, and the caress of his cheek halted to turn his eyes back to hers. _**"What's wrong?"**_

Tsukune swallowed the guilt in his throat as he held out her rosary. "Moka…do you trust me enough to put this back on?"

Her look of confusion warmed into an amused smile before she pulled his head down to hers and let him know of the hunger that had grown in his absence. He just as easily took her breath away when he reciprocated, and she playfully nipped at his lips as she let him go and took her seal back. _**"I think I like what this month has done for you. I expect the next time I'm released to be under much **_**different**_** circumstances. We have a lot to catch up on, **_**lover**_**,"**_ she purred sensually, and with one last significant look at her would-be captors, clicked her Rosario back onto her choker.

Shock, or any synonym thereof, no longer adequately described what the suitor family was exhibiting. Though she hadn't done it physically, both got the distinct impression they had just been flipped off. As the pink-haired, cheerful Outer Moka returned, she frowned as she processed the memories of what had transpired. Adopting a pout that looked much too put out for the current state of affairs, she glowered in Tsukune's direction as she grabbed a fistful of his shirt. "You are _going_ to make me forget my name before you get _near_ this rosary again, got it?"

Despite absolutely everything going on around them, a laugh forced itself from the depths of his heart.

Pink-haired, cheerful, kind Moka was amazing.

Pink-haired, cheerful, _sexually frustrated_ Moka was even better.

Suddenly, he just couldn't keep the smile off his face. Things were bad, there was no saying anything against that, but like always, they would get through it. Hadn't that been the whole point of him going off to train? Hadn't that been the whole point of that display in the first place? The answer, naturally, was yes.

A wave of his hand dispelled the electric bars keeping his opponents immobile, and while they recovered from what they had just witnessed, Tsukune bowed good-naturedly to his bronze-skinned companion and held out his hand. "Now then; shall we dance, oh wonderful _Familiar_ of mine?" His emphasis of the word had the desired effect in the newfound pallor of Vincent and Alexander.

She curtsied back mock-seriously with her giant shirt and slid her hand into his. "Let our enemies be our floor, friend of my heart."

The imagery of the single moment in time was forever engraved in the minds of the six nearby women. Even though one would never admit to seeing him in a romantic way—ever—there was something far more powerful in what they observed there than any Youkai on Earth. As a smiling young man extended an invitation to the young, yet noticeably different woman by his side, they all knew that same request had been made to them. Though it took some longer than others, and challenged them in ways nothing ever had, eventually every hand had surrendered to the love and kindness they knew was in that gesture. Even some of the most rare, prideful, and powerful monsters in existence were drawn to it, and races that had never associated with each other as anything other than nuisances or enemies were now fighting side by side, as _family_. And it all started with one, extraordinarily ordinary human boy with a heart bigger than his head.

Rei giggled softly as her partner played the part of the gentleman and kissed the top of her knuckles. Wearing clothes more suited to rags and only negligibly clean because of the frequent use of their self-styled pool, there was still something princely about the way he carried himself, and it was with confidence that the two looked towards their enemies, eager to fight. Moka had never been so proud of him, even if it wasn't her he was fighting with. He looked like a true vampire, self-assured, ready to face any obstacle and…and…were his ears….pointed?

For the challengers, who had faced nothing but one new thing after another, _forced_ them into stunned stupidity time and again, Alexander for one could be heard grinding his teeth. Admittedly, Vincent wasn't that far behind, though he knew better than to let his emotions cloud his judgment. This proved invaluable when Alex's hair-trigger nature snapped with all the finesse it was known for, which was of course: none. It was the _only_ thing that kept Alex on his feet when he made the same mistake he had once already that day, and foolishly rushed onwards against two combatants obviously comfortable with each other. Positioning himself expertly beside his brother's reckless charge, it insured any move done against Alex would have to be well executed, otherwise they faced instant retaliation.

Whatever he had been expecting, it certainly wasn't what they encountered.

An elegant motion of Tsukune's arm had Rei twirled effortlessly out of harm's way, and with both still in the same movements, one swatted the upper strike of Alexander's higher with startling strength while the other seamlessly intercepted Vincent's feint and sent him sprawling forward under the momentum of his own attack. The unused hands caught together a split-second after their counterparts had completed the acts set to them, and with almost disturbing grace the partners pulled themselves back together into what anyone with any experience would realize was a closed position. Not once did their smiles falter, if anything they only grew.

"I should have known this would work better with humanoid attackers," Tsukune noted, to Rei's amusement. "That was easy compared to the others!"

Her reply was cut off by the renewed assault of two agitated vampires. Far from being caught unaware, they merely duck and spun, succeeding in both escaping the blows and folding their arms over one another. A matching grin was shared before the two spun back and sent what was effectively a double palm-thrust flat into Vincent's abs, punctuated by the crisp clap of displaced air. With his brother momentarily out of the fight, Alex wasted no time in accelerating the pace. There was no argument against his birthright, as much as they might have wanted to, for only a vampire could fight with such speed and power, regardless of how much of both attributes he may have held.

Now, to say Vincent was unnerved when he saw what the fight looked like to an outside observer and not a participant would be offensive. His breathing was already returning to normal after his stomach had all but demanded it be allowed to relinquish hold of his breakfast, and yet he still couldn't quite find all of his faculties as he watched two people—his enemies-in-law, as it was—literally _dance_ around his brother, whom in comparison might as well have been flailing his arms like a two-year old child. He literally _was_ flailing as blows rained down on him without pause, a perfect tempo set between two people and aimed towards only one. Even fully automatic weapons needed a break to be reloaded! They, quite obviously, didn't.

Hesitation was not something they had; they reacted quickly and surely to every punch or kick thrown their way, either apart or together. Though their eyes were both on their target, he knew just as well that only one pair needed to be. Just from seeing their routine he noticed how one always helped the other before anything really needed to be done, and the truly baffling thing about that was that 'one' never stayed the same! They weren't in perfect synch, their motions were, at times, downright amateurish, but there was no doubt as to the profound _trust_ they held in one another.

That being said, he couldn't honestly place a name to what they were doing. He was a vampire, born to an elite group, as comfortable on the ballroom floor as he was on the battlefield. If he was to compare the styles of dance he knew—which was as considerable as his repertoire of martial arts—to what the pair was performing, not one of them fit the bill, and that was if he was willing to dignify the odd mesh of fighting and footwork as _dance_ at all! However, his mind simply couldn't define the movements so out of place, yet so peculiarly sleek and fitting as anything else. Strangely enough, the more he looked the more he thought he had seen pieces of it before…

Unknowingly, Vincent's thoughts were being mirrored by another duo off to the side. Mizore scratched the side of her head as she watched her lover and his dragon weave through the angry blows of their opponent, and the barest shade of a frown wormed over her porcelain features.

"You know, I can't help but think—"

"That some of that looks awfully familiar, right?" Kurumu finished, wearing an identical look of perplexed concentration. When the Snow Woman nodded, the bluehead frowned deeper and cast her perusal back to the amazing display of dexterity in motion. The enraged vamp still hadn't managed so much as a glancing blow. "I know, I keep thinking I should _know_ what they're doing, but—"

"But that should be impossible, right?" Mizore concluded, and in an exact reversal of roles, the succubus nodded.

A stifled choke from in front of them brought their awareness outside of themselves, and it only took a peek over to see the vivid light of recognition in their resident genius' dark violet orbs. As they darted between them and the fighting, that sparkle only became brighter. "Sweet Merlin and Morgan…"

"What, what?" Both cried, eager to hear the answer they were unable to find.

The young witch's grin could have split her face if it was possible. "You'll see," she sang.

They saw all right, just not what they wanted to see.

Tsukune had always been more of a brawler than anything else, they knew that. Infused with vampire blood, he was the ultimate personification of an unstoppable force. No matter how injured he became or what stood in his way, Tsukune could, and _would_, charge forward, regardless of how close he came to losing himself in the blood. When Inner Moka took to training him, that unstoppable force was given a focus, far more flexibility, and most of all, a discernable style to use. The only thing lacking had been his confidence, and that had been changing too. There was only one brawler in the fight they were looking at, and it most definitely was _not_ Tsukune Aono.

Vampire and dragon twisted and twirled, sometimes in the most ludicrous of ways, and yet they always managed to catch each other should one slip up. The height difference between them made it look very unusual, if not unnatural, but they all knew _that_ wouldn't last long. The last time they had seen Rei she looked hardly any older than ten, now she could have passed for mid thirteen! Be that as it may, the fruits of their tenure in Paradise were showing in spades. Punches were deftly avoided by one while the other trained an attack, and kicks could be evaded with the elasticity of a tree in wind or stopped with the rigidity of an unbreakable wall. They knew Tsukune's strength had suffered greatly by taking the seal around his neck, but Rei's was a complete mystery when in her human disguise. Apparently, together they were more than enough to stop one self-important lesser vampire.

At least, that was until Vincent decided to make his presence known again and even out the fight. Two-on-two was, in theory at any rate, a fairer fight. Two _vampires_ however, versus one severely restricted and a dragon not even half a year old, was asking for trouble. As the two teams fought they held their ground admirably, though now the smiles formerly on their faces had been wrought into thin lines of concentration. Fooling around was no longer an option; the brothers were back to fighting capacity and not as easily thrown off by the unknown anymore. Strikes gained purpose behind the mindless anger with the other brother there to somewhat direct the flow, and Tsukune and Rei were forced to improvise on the spot. They weren't used to having their style analyzed for any amount of time, thus when counters were developed they _needed_ to come up with something new. Practicing against beasts only dimly aware of the tactics used against them was useful, but not nearly as much as fighting sentient humans—or variations thereof—to finesse their style.

A punch between them by Alexander necessitated they jump apart as the ground imploded underfoot, and Vincent's follow-up would have taken off Tsukune's head had he not flung himself to the side. Rolling into a controlled flip, the former human was back on his feet in a matter of seconds, his stance carefully guarded. He wasn't winded, not by a long shot, but things had taken a terrible turn for the worse with he and Rei separated.

"Now, I've seen some of what you can do by yourself. Show me _more_," Vincent drawled with barely restrained excitement.

"Only if you tell me which one of you idiots broke Kokoa-chan's collarbone," Tsukune growled back.

For a moment, the other vampire wasn't able to keep the surprise off his face. "How do you…oh…_oh._ My god," he whispered in amazement, "that's why you were favoring your right side earlier, wasn't it? If I attacked her right now, I wouldn't find any trace of that injury, would I?"

Brown eyes narrowed. "So, it was the little idiot then. Thank you."

"Wait—!"

A pulse in their connection was the only warning Rei needed to know what was going to happen, and she adjusted accordingly.

"Meo accito auscultet, Quattuor Venti! Flet, Une Vente!" _Heed my call, oh Four Winds! Let It Blow Away, One Wind!_

The sliver of color in the edge of Vincent's vision clued him in to the fact that this next attack might not be all it seemed, and moments later he cursed himself for being right. Just before the breeze turned into a violent gale, he saw the young girl that had launched herself overhead take a deep breath…and turn the sky red. Napalm poured down in a deadly wave, and slit pupils turned whisper thin as he noticed the veritable wall of wind closing in on their position.

Survival instinct took over. Throwing away any pretense of holding back, the elder vampire's Youki flared around him like a red shroud, and he pushed every little bit he could into his legs as he all but warped to his brother's location and tackled him as far away as he could. Nothing had ever been as urgent in his mind as the need right then to _get the hell out of the way_.

When the dragonfire and wind collided, the only natural outcome came about spontaneously. What had already been a raging inferno bloated into a towering blast-furnace in nanoseconds, disintegrating anything that might have been in the path of the directed spell. The now disheveled vampires watched the tsunami of flame sow destruction in horrified awe. Even as far away as Vincent had managed to get them, they could still _feel _the heat. To think that it could have just as easily been them in that sea of instant incineration was humbling. Immortality that relied on regeneration meant nothing in the face of that kind of immolation.

"Where is all of this power coming from…?" Alexander muttered as he tried to steady his breathing. "And how does he plan to stop this thing? He could burn this whole place to ashes with something like that!" He got his answer soon enough, and just like his brother had earlier, he cursed himself.

The magically-enhanced fire crackled and hissed angrily for some unknown reason, and in mere minutes what had been a thick sheet of roiling crimson had faded to barely a veil as steam rose from the dwindling remains. It _should_ have come as no surprise when Tsukune Aono stepped into view, gemstone hands and hair gleaming blue and orange from the surrounding firelight. Ice spawned from his every footfall, gaining ground against the superheated surroundings and quelling the last remnants in its wake, until soon all that remained was smoldering vapor rising from burnt ruins, held in stasis under crystal cocoons. Rei stood by him just like before, but where she stepped no ice dared encroach, and if any heat had remained in the path she had walked, her skin showed no notice of it.

"That was one of the most lethal Movements we were able to come up with in the time we had. You wanted to see more of what I could do? Take a look," Tsukune jeered as he swung a frozen hand over the landscape.

And people were.

…

"Mizore. Mizore!"

The Snow Woman started when she was shaken by her duet partner. "H-Huh?"

The violet-eyed woman smirked. "You're drooling."

Delicate cheeks colored as she wiped her mouth. "Can you blame me?"

Looking out on the scene of perfectly preserved devastation with two people standing at the center of it, just as perfectly calm, Kurumu whispered, "No…no I can't."

…

Both Yukari and Ruby were on the verge of apoplexy.

The younger witch looked up at her elder with wide eyes and might have tried to say something, but nothing came from her flapping mouth.

Ruby sighed. "I know."

Yukari looked back at Tsukune, then back at her, pointed, then kept trying to mouth words.

Again, Ruby sighed. "I know."

The genius' knees gave out, and she slumped to the ground. Ruby simply knelt beside her and wrapped her arms around the trembling witch's shoulders.

"I know."

Neither of those spells had been in the book she had given him.

…

His patience was gone; this had to end. He had hoped that show of force would discourage the brothers and finally convince them to leave in peace. If anything, Alex's ire burned brighter and Vincent's interest kept rising. A different beat passed between him and his Familiar, another distinct call-sign, and they settled into a stance instantly identifiable.

…

Mizore and Kurumu gaped. Swiveling to stare at their youngest member, Yukari Sendou smiled weakly.

Well, they certainly recognized it now.

…

"First Movement: Ode To The Original Duet!"

Their arms swayed purposefully in an effort for momentum, and the ground crumpled as they stomped forward simultaneously and shot those limbs forward in a faultless reproduction of a technique developed by the black and white duet. The air rippled in protest as it sheared chunks of earth from the soil en route to its target, before ultimately detonating with the force of a small bomb smack dab in the middle of Alexander's chest. Wholly unprepared for the ranged assault, the vampire was flung backwards like a rag doll, flipping every which way until a frozen tree was toppled in stopping his trip, where he didn't rise.

"Just stay down already! God, I had really thought we could beat him without going into our Movements. Sorry, Rei-chan," the Snow-Man impersonator said while hints of his old smile reappeared on his face.

The white-haired teen chuckled. "The resilience of a vampire is legendary, is it not? Surely _you_ would know that?"

Of all the things to interrupt them, it was _applause_ that came to their ears. That mocking, amused sound turned their gaze back to the one enemy left, where sure enough, Vincent was clapping. Only the vestiges of a smile were left on his lips, leaving behind a lopsided smirk related more to a sneer than anything else. With each slow, meticulous clap, the haze of red Youki that had started to gather around him thickened, and he only stopped when that aura seethed with the same restlessness that was in his eyes.

"I'll admit, when Alexander first brought up bringing me along for help, I thought he was joking," the older man stated offhandedly as he dusted the soot from his expensive clothes. "I knew right when I saw you though that he had good reason, only I couldn't have ever imagined it would come to this. Allow me to repay your kindness."

Digging his fangs into his palm, Vincent held out the hand dripping blood from between clenched fingers. Streams connected and gained weight, oozing liquid strength readily surrendered to gravity's pull.

_Drip._

Tsukune flinched as the first drop hit dirt.

_Drip._

Rei shuddered as the earth she was so connected to was violated by a new magic, neither hers or her partner's.

_Drip._

Vincent smiled.

"Wrought from mine, ever thine; bound by blood, unto steel come. By bond I command: return to my hand!"

The scarlet liquid on the mottled land glowed by its own light, bursting into an array of concentric circles formed by esoteric symbology numbering in the hundreds of millions. From the epicenter of those glowing runes a bone white sword materialized in a flash, and at its appearance what had summoned it vanished just as quickly. The weapon fit its master in the same manner as his clothes; plain, yet no misgiving could be made as to the superior craftsmanship of the item. Bearing a straight blade and sharpened to a razor's edge on only one side, its purpose was just like that of its medieval relatives. The only detail of interest was where the guard met the blade itself, for there the silver hilt had been molded into the stylized head of a great dog with rubies for eyes, and from between its bared teeth the creamy blade extended. It was more terrifying in its simplicity than it would have been had it been more extravagant. This was a weapon that knew the taste of blood. Worse yet was that it was something both Kokoa and Moka knew, if their gasps were any indication.

"Magic?" Rei stated in confusion. "What manner of trickery is this? Nature had no place in that, yet still I see evidence beyond reproach before my very eyes. I pray thee, explain."

The gray-haired Youkai laughed. "I suppose it's the least I can do. Very well. I'm no hybrid, like the snow-wizard over there seems to be, but Vampires have a _different _skill-set available to them. There have been tales throughout history of vampires ensorcelling unsuspecting humans; that by biting them we can be given control over their bodies, and that's not far from the truth. As always, it boils down to our blood. What we use can't really be called Magic in the sense you use, but more fittingly: _blood_-magic. Vampires and their Familiars can share the strongest bonds out of all the monsters in the world, simply because if a Vampire is truly willing to bind themselves to another, they will sacrifice what they cherish most to seal the bond: their blood. Our blood is _ripe_ with magical properties, but to use it we have to give up that which gives us our strength, which goes against our pride. Though limited in its uses compared to witch magic, the potency is there nonetheless. My family is looked down on not because we're weaker than most of our brethren, but because of our tradition.

"Long ago, the ancestor we descended from wasn't _feared_ by humans, rather, _loved_ by them. He lived in a small village far from civilization, and instead of seeing their destruction in the form of our forefather, the habitants of that village saw their savior. You see, back then demons _did_ roam the lands, giant beasts that the Youkai of today come from. He had had his fill of violence, and he was hated for it by those like him. So, he left. When they saw this man with the eyes and power of a demon, they were _awed._ In return for protecting their little town, all he asked for was a willing donor to sate his thirst when needed and to be left alone. That far out, no one had heard of the Vampire, the wolf in sheep's clothing.

"While he was there not one villager fell prey to the monsters lurking outside their borders. They loved him for it. My family still tells his story because he did something very few vampires can claim. When his village was attacked, he fought and _slew_ a Hellhound." The witches, the ones most knowledgeable in history, couldn't suppress their startled chokes. Vincent gave a slightly courteous nod to them as a result before continuing his tale. "These weren't the small little three-headed puppies of this day and age; these were true demons that deserved their designation. Their fire was second only to the mythical dragon, and their size befitting the gates which they were said to spawn from.

"That vampire killed the hound after a long and terrible battle, but he respected the beast so much he took every one of the teeth from its three heads, each over half as big as he was tall, and carried them one by one to the master blacksmith. Precious metals from his own fortune were melted into the hilts for the weapons, and when they were done there lay enough that to this day not one of our children has had to bear a sword once used in the hand of another. To show his admiration of the beast's power, he cut himself and filled the hollow of the first tooth-made blade with his own blood, and named it after the demon it came from. Even in death, the tooth acknowledged that honor and some of its original power was restored, rewarding the result of weakness with a blade doubly more powerful. From then on, the sword would come whenever he so wished it on his spilled blood. Thus, our family is the only branch with 'inanimate objects' as Familiars, for we and only we sacrifice enough power to bring swords of another demon to our own level, and secure an unbreakable blade. Alexander isn't old enough to be given one of his own yet, so my Cerberus alone will have to suffice."

Implications abounded in those words, and none of them good. Vincent's specialty didn't lie in his hands and feet like Moka, no, his was in sword-fighting. Which meant…

"Back!" Tsukune shouted as both he and Rei reeled away from Vincent's sudden charge, just barely avoiding the slash that would have cleaved their tops from their bottoms.

Desperation mingled with improvisation under the resultant siege. They knew they were only worse off if they split up, so their only choice was to stay together and hope they could keep him unbalanced with attacks of their own while he focused on attacking one of them. That proved exceedingly difficult. If the other vampire had moved _fluidly_ with his brother, he was poetry-in-motion with his sword. Spending almost every hour of the day for two weeks practicing their new art was nothing in the face of however many _years_ laid apparent in Vincent's strokes. He was a master of his chosen weapon, and they had nothing to defend with. Of course, the best defense when dealing with something like a sword was _don't let the damn thing hit!_

They danced, swayed, twisted, and attacked, all to no avail. It only slowed the progress of the edge, and he demonstrated it was perfectly able to block even punches with only the side. Their advantage had only been an illusion; the elder brother by himself had been enough to take them both on from the beginning. The icy terrain might have helped them had it been in more than a distinct area, but since only Tsukune had any type of grip on it they couldn't have stayed even if they wanted to. Any plan that might have relied on such was further disregarded when all of a sudden a whip of _flame_ followed a downward slash, and on instinct they jumped away from each other. Not even seconds later they both knew it was the wrong thing to do. Using speed shown on only one occasion, Vincent shot behind Rei, and there was a dull _thump_ as the back of the blade met the side of her neck.

She slumped to the ground unceremoniously like a puppet with its strings cut, and the storm above quieted into meager dark clouds.

"No matter what kind of monster you are, when you're in human shape you share their weaknesses," the model-turned-warrior explained calmly over the unconscious form of the young girl.

Pregnant silence filled Youkai Academy once more.

There wasn't a single person on the balconies, in the rooms, or in the group still huddled on the ground below, that didn't join in on the unanimous whisper of, "Oh _shit_."

Vincent never saw the fist approaching his face until it was too late.

He bounced like a skipping stone on a glass lake. No amount of training in how to fall properly could be used because there was no telling which end was up, and by the time he was stopped by a lone gravestone it was a miracle he hadn't stabbed himself. His head spun and his jaw ached, and not for the first time was he amazed by the 'whelp' his brother had come to destroy. Using his sword as a makeshift cane, he expected to be pounded the instant he showed signs of movement, but when his eyes finally focused he saw the exact opposite. The person who continually defied all logic was back to normal, _stumbling_ towards him, and _clutching his neck_. When his lips started turning blue, Vincent almost couldn't believe what he was seeing.

He couldn't breathe_._

_Why can't I breathe!_ Tsukune shouted frantically in his mind.

He wanted his power, _needed_ his power! He needed _more_. Just like every time he had tried in Paradise however, his Rosario reacted, and _violently_. The deeper he tried to delve, the harder the enchanted chain fought back. The stronger he got, the stronger the seal seemed to become. Why? Just this _once_, wasn't his cause pure enough? Wasn't something he never wanted to see able to break the damnable seal holding his true power captive in his own body! As spots of black started popping up in his vision he fell to his knees, trying, reaching, but desperately needing air. Forget gaining _more_ power, Tsukune had never felt what little he _did_ have so low before!

_Why! Why…can't…I…_

Grabbing through his shirt, a scream forced out more of what precious little oxygen he had left in his lungs as his hand was literally burnt for the effort. Ridged outlines of purple defined themselves against his skin, pulsing in tune to his heart. His arms, his legs, his neck, up his cheeks, on any visible surface of his skin, terrible parodies of his veins swollen dangerously with blood both from a lack of what they needed and his own rage.

"What _are_ you?" he heard a vaguely remembered voice say, and through the darkness invading his sight he saw not only Vincent, but _Alexander_ as well. He was struggling to stand, and it wasn't likely he could do anything _but_, but he was still _standing_.

'Rage' almost wasn't encompassing enough to describe what his instincts were howling. Had everything they worked for been for _nothing?_ To rely solely on Moka or Rei's true forms would simply exacerbate the problem in the long run. _He_ needed to be seen as worthy, _he_ needed to be able to fight off those challenging him! _He_ needed to be able to do more than gasp for air as his enemies stood before him! He would tear them apart with his bare hands! He would kill—

The epiphany couldn't have hurt him more if he had been thrown into a pool of holy water in cement shoes.

_NO!_

Had he lost himself so much that he would let the bloodlust he had worked so hard to control shade his thoughts at the first opportunity? When things took a turn was his earliest impulse to try and tear off his seal and forget his morals? His promises? Was he really that pathetic?

_NO!_

The thunderheads above roared with renewed might right when his weakness was going to be taken advantage of, just as wings black as pitch tore through his shirt and Tsukune yielded to the divine cross not only willingly, but with thanks. Huge, heaving gulps of oxygen were the only sounds anyone heard, and it was with a dry chuckle that the former human returned to his feet as his burned hand healed without notice. It happened so suddenly even the strike coming his way had been stopped mid-swing.

Things would be different, he would _make_ them so.

Who better to warp reality than one who, by nature, could do that very thing?

…

"Kurumu…Kurumu! Hey, boob-lady!"

The succubus started when she was shaken by her duet partner. "Whazuh?"

Mizore smirked as she pointed down, and the busty bluette followed the path until she saw her own tail wagging wildly against the ground.

"You're drooling too."

She licked her lips slowly, savoring the taste like she was the scene before her.

"And don't I know it."

_So Vincent,_ she thought smugly,_ your fire may make the ice of a Snow-Man a waste of time, but I wonder, how will you do against one of _my_ kind?_

They would soon find out, and she couldn't wait.

…

.

**Author's Notes:** I decided to cut this chapter in half because I've already got fourteen pages for the next one, and after two months of trying to finish it I figured I might as well post something. I tried all of Canada Day to get the thing wrapped up, but when it still wasn't where I wanted it to be and days later ended with it at thirty-four pages with the same result, finally I just asked some of the people PMing me then said what the heck. Thanks everyone for your patience, and I hope to get the continuing chapter out soon. Since with my schedule that's likely to be in the next week, I thought I should post this now and end the drought early. Thank you all for reviewing, and continuing to review! I'm glad people are still finding my story, and still liking it just as much as the ones that have been reviewing since the beginning.

I'd like to single out No Longer Ninja for a special thanks. You made your arguments—good arguments, and ones I've long accepted—but you did something that made me truly respect them. You respected my status as the writer, and didn't try to simply force your opinion on me and walk away like a troll. You stated what you saw, both the good and the bad, and in the end differed to my opinion as the author. That's amazing constructive criticism, and exactly the kind of thing I write for. Don't apologize for writing a long review, I live for them!

Not to say that I don't appreciate every single review I get regardless of length, but since I can't PM my response I'm putting it here. Needless to say I take every review seriously, and even if I don't respond to them I'm thankful for every one you all give me. To think I've broken five-hundred reviews simply blows my mind, and makes my someday goal not all that impossible anymore. I can't wait to see if I can get there.

As for the manga and any changes I was supposed to make, at this point I'm claiming divergence. The latest chapters made me lose a lot of respect for the manga. World Domination? Really? With Bleach it's somewhat feasible, since apparently the spirit realm of that universe relies on a monarchy that's easily overthrown by force, but in the R+V universe? I just don't see it happening. At least we know why Moka repressed those memories now, but I doubt that Akasha went down that easily. Next release we're probably gonna see just how immortal a Shinso-class vampire really is. I hope so, because honestly, if they killed off Moka's mother that easily I'm going to be right pissed! How Moka became a Shinso is—at least to me—pretty simple to see. Akasha said Moka nearly didn't survive after her birth, so I'm thinking that, since parents would do anything for their child, she either used her own, or Alucard's even, blood to ensure she survived. If vampires only start coming into their power after their tenth birthday, no wonder they would want to get her away if they knew what Akuha's goal was.

As for the Shinso revelation, doesn't that sound familiar? *evil grin* Oh I love when I'm close to canon. How much you wanna bet Akuha will go all that way for Moka in the future, only to find out that she isn't the only Shinso anymore? Any guesses as to who else may have gotten a whole lot of Shinso-class blood? Maybe enough to destroy his humanity? Anyone? Oh I can't express how much I can't wait for Tsukune to come into his own later in the series. Then again, if he doesn't, that'll just be another disappointment attributed to the writers of that series. They've certainly amassed a lot of them in my mind. I'm justified in my empowering of Tsukune! Yes!

Well, I'm off to finish up the next installment! I'll thank you all in advance for reviewing! Reviews are my drug and I need my fix! LOL! You guys are all awesome, and I thank you so much for what you've given me. I'll strive to keep meeting the encouragement you give me!

Until next time,

Sabr.


	19. Pt II: Reap The Whirlwind

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Rosario+Vampire, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story. Simple enough, ne? Just don't copy from this story and we're all good!

…

…**Reap The Whirlwind**

.

_So Vincent,_ Kurumu thought smugly,_ your fire may make the ice of a Snow-Man a waste of time, but I wonder, how will you do against one of _my_ kind?_

…

Something new was in the air, something different than before, an aura, a _feeling_ that wormed its way into cognizance though there was no outward indication to warrant its existence in the minds of those present. Fundamentally, something had changed. A sliver of fear made itself known in that feeling, for they knew whom they were looking at had initiated that change, and now he too commanded that new aura they couldn't see, could hardly feel, but knew it was there all the same. Only one knew he didn't _command_ that aura at all, for she and she alone knew what it was.

With vampires their auras could be more oppressive than any blunt force, a physical manifestation of pure power translated directly into strength; _their_ power. It pushed down on everything, like arrogance given form, blocking out all but it and demanding it be respected with single-minded focus. In that the magic of witches was inherently different, for even if a magical aura came into being it was exemplified by its connection to Nature, a connection that could be exploited to seemingly unrealistic—and a good many deadly—ends. As Nature worked _with_ the mage employing it, in a sense nothing was unrealistic, because the Earth itself assisted in the result. Oddly enough, the Snow People were very similar, but like the Vampires their power was derived from themselves and almost seemed to contradict the future which they preferred to look to. The ability to freeze things, take their choices out of the flow of time and stick them in everlasting Present, however temporarily they might choose to do so. Likened to cold and intent, a Snow Person's aura could be easily identified when exposed.

This was unlike any of those, for what they felt, what unsettled them so much, was that this was hardly an aura at all. There was no oppressive feeling, no magical display, not even a drop in temperature. Everything simply screamed something was _wrong_ about the picture in front of them. It was like Nature, _Reality itself_, avoided coming into contact with the space _he_ occupied, like it knew to him it was nothing but a malleable entity that he had complete and utter control over. On a level all but one could realize, that aura almost scared them more.

Kurumu knew—they had never thought of the ramifications of their plan before Tsukune had manifested frozen hands, but now they were seeing the results directly. Leathery black wings had taken residence on Tsukune's back, and from the new hole in his pants they could see the long, devilish tail swaying lazily to and fro. From their vantage point they could even see his once-normal ears, lengthened and tapered to elfish tips. The allure was almost too much to resist; charisma practically _radiated_ from his body. Just like a Succubus could grab attention with their mere presence, so too could an Incubus. No fear could be seen on his face; any shaking of his convictions had been settled with an iron grip. There stood a vampire in all but appearance, and that appearance was no less intimidating.

A muted "I told you so," came from Kokoa's direction.

_This is new,_ Tsukune thought with a smile, after the obligatory, _'holy crap I have a tail!'_ phase of course. His body felt different, though that was likely because of the new additions he wasn't used to having. He rolled his shoulders and tested his body with a few experimental movements, and needless to say it felt weird when new appendages responded to the stimuli. Just like when his hair had frozen and he had become more like Mizore than he ever had before, he knew he had changed in more than appearance. The whisper of mind-magic was stronger now, more dominant, and he knew it would be perfect to throw a certain vampire off-guard. He was going to see him _writhe_, that he swore.

Mirthful honey-brown stared into two pairs of astonished ruby, and his subsequent smile was eager, if not slightly vengeful.

"Well now, where were we?" Leaping away from a newly-formed rope of fire produced by the off-white sword, he quipped, "Oh right, I was running for my life. So silly of me to forget!" He wasn't totally kidding either, but the high he was on made making light of the situation all too easy.

Nails trimmed and blunt thickened while they sharpened, turning more into outward extensions of the distal phalanx than the refined, dagger-esque length characteristic of a Succubus. On larger, more masculine hands, the inch-long claws suited flawlessly. Most Succubae and Incubi may be a good many ranks below the famed Super Vampire, but in vanity they were a close second, and third _only_ if a dragon's hoard was taken into account. The proof was in how even transformed they sought to be creatures just as dangerous as they were beautiful. It worked.

Agilely evading yet another attempt to divide his body into halves, Tsukune swiped hard at Vincent when he came into range. The claws would be less than worthless trying to hold off a demon blade powered by vampire blood, but they could still do damage. He honestly had to hope so, because the consequences of them not being able to do that were higher than he was willing to pay. He hadn't expected Vincent to recoil the second he saw the hand come down, falling to the side in a graceful roll that minimized effort and maximized distance. Any thought of wondering why was thrown away when once again the ground was subjected to mutilation, this time from wind currents not altered by magic, but sheer force. The warily guarding swordsman didn't know what to make of the way Tsukune looked at his hands after that, but the disconcerting smile that soon followed made him suspect he'd rather not know.

Words became unnecessary; the battle had stretched on too long, there needed to be a conclusion. The terrible game resumed, though one side was _still_ at a distinct disadvantage. Without a sword or the slightest idea on how to use one, Tsukune could only ever be the defensive party. Then, as whips of heat slashed around his ever-moving body, he made the connection that changed everything. _It's just like playing tag with the Kamaitachi!_

It was true. Tsukune had no hope of matching the Sickle Weasels in speed or distance traveled, but if their blood had any effect it was a shot of adrenaline to already vampiric reactions. He may not have been able to chase _them_, but that certainly wasn't to say he couldn't wait for them to come to _him_. Their game was quite simple: they attacked him, and he tried to attack them while _not_ getting hit. Thus, 'tag' was born, though admittedly the weasels currently had him beat at a score of three-hundred to sixty-two. They couldn't talk, but he could swear they laughed at him every time they got a hit. Now if _Gin_ donated some blood, _then_ he'd get his revenge.

The wings threw off his usual upper-body balance, adding resistance that had never been there before, but the look on Vincent's face when he saw he was going to _close his eyes_ was not something he'd soon forget. He needed to _react_, and thankfully this sense wasn't completely useless under the seal of the Rosario. His sightless vision lit up with specks of white, and he dissolved into a flurry of movement that ensured no slash of the sword that had its own youki would hit. Against monsters that rode on the very wind itself, sight was worthless. _This_ opponent struck _like_ the wind, so Tsukune moved like a leaf caught in its clutches. It was only when he was by himself that he could do that, for Rei didn't have the same abilities as him. While her response-time was higher than most, she simply couldn't react on fluxes of youki alone like he could.

Left, right, duck, jump, twist, strike, land, strike, duck, slash. The cadence of their fight never slowed, the melody of their motions set to a percussion of hissing flame and cracking ground. Tsukune wasn't dumb enough to cut off his raging blood entirely, but he refused to allow himself to give in completely. The result was an incubus that fought like a vampire, and he took full advantage of that. Grabbing his foe's wrist at the downswing and plunging the sword in his hand into the ground, he successfully negated any further combo while he smashed his open palm into the other vampire's face. The solid _crack_ it made on contact was oh so very satisfying.

As he stumbled back dazedly, Vincent was officially unnerved, and had been ever since the student underwent yet one more new, unexplained transformation. Nothing made sense anymore! _He can't be an Onimodoki, they only imitate the powers of other monsters! That ice wasn't fake, and that magic wasn't either! A Doppelganger? No, they copy _everything. _If he copied one of those witches he'd look exactly like them! There's no way he's an Outcast, their blood's usually so mixed all they can do is transform body parts! A third generation maybe? The half-blood of a witch or wizard and a full Youkai might dilute the effects, and the next generation marries into a…but that doesn't explain his regeneration at all! If he really took her broken bone he would be in significantly more pain! But how could he do that in the first place? And how can he be fighting me with his eyes closed?_

It reminded him disturbingly of another encounter. He, like his brother, had been trained from a young age to use swords in preparation for when they were ready to bear the signature of their family, but he had never felt as outclassed as he was when his mother had administered the final test. It was meant to show how much a family member had yet to grow, but she hadn't even deemed it fit to call her blade. She anticipated his every move with her eyes closed, and disarmed him with her bare hands.

This Tsukune Aono, he moved exactly like her. He moved even though he had no way of seeing he had to, and unlike her he took every opening he could. _I've fought in war! I've broken through bunkers, teased the blackest Black Ops alive! How can this _child_ adapt to my technique so quickly?_

_He_ could do it of course, but _he_ was a Vampire! _They_ and _only_ they had the natural ability to sense the demonic energies of other monsters as a conscious application. He didn't know whether he should be insulted or amazed that the man dodging his blows was doing something similar. If he wasn't an enemy of his brother, he could honestly think he wouldn't mind getting to know the walking anomaly.

That wasn't going to stop him from beating him, but beggars couldn't be choosers.

…

Three girls screamed as the wall next to the window they had been looking out of exploded inwards, covering them and the rest of the room in splintered wood and drywall dust. The rather dramatic entrance into the second-floor dorm had been the result of a deceptive kick from mid-air. The only good thing was it hadn't been the sword instead, which had been what he was expecting. A figure coughed in the middle of the room and made to stand, where the tall, winged man they had just been watching was revealed shaking himself off and muttering under his breath angrily.

"Two. Bloody. Years! Two years I've been explaining extra uniform costs! Now _property damage?_ Oh ho, there's no way I'm taking the fall for this!" He suddenly seemed to notice there were other people in the room, and Tsukune Aono rubbed the back of his neck nervously as he saw the three young women staring at him. "Um…whoops? Sorry about your room. You know it was his fault right, not mine? You'll tell the headmaster that?" They nodded dumbly. He visibly sagged with relief and smiled warmly, unknowingly producing three blushes. "Thanks."

Practically stomping out of the hole in the wall, Tsukune didn't even bother with the guardrail, and instead booted it straight out of its supports with one kick from his bare foot. He paused, as if just realizing what he'd done, before turning back to them. "He did that too, alright?"

Again, they nodded, and he smiled again. With a farewell wave, he jumped back down to where his opponent was waiting, almost like he didn't know how to use the wings on his back.

For those girls, suddenly seeing amber-brown eyes in their dreams wasn't so impossible to explain anymore.

…

When the vampire-turned-incubus landed, he cast an irate glare at the older male that in any other situation would have had Vincent laughing. He could practically see the accusation of _'you just _had_ to do that, didn't you?'_ in his eyes. It might have even been friendly had all-out war not broken out right after.

While mismatched, both managed to fight in a way that made the other's style a wasted endeavor. Since neither could truly gain the advantage that way, Vincent did something that most experienced fighters couldn't. He switched ranges. Jumping back from a retaliatory punch, he continued even when Tsukune made to pursue, setting both a ways apart. The puzzled scowl over closed eyes showed his opponent didn't know what to make of the change, and that was when he struck. Flinging out his sword with a full flare of fire following, the whips Tsukune had dealt with earlier were suddenly revealed to have an almost corporeal tensile elasticity when desired, and could be used in the same manner as a real whip. The saving grace was in the fact that since the flames were demonic in origin, they too were composed of Youki, and thus were well within Tsukune's grasp of comprehension.

Unfortunately for the former human, the weapon-wielder proved just as accomplished in this field as he had the last. The whip was constantly moving, even when simply rounding around its master's body in preparation. It could move in ways normal whips couldn't, stretch endlessly, horizontally, expand, burst, and even with long-range attacks of his own, Tsukune was hard-pressed to find an opening since he was forced so thoroughly on the defensive.

Bounding over a sideswipe, he lashed out with both arms, hoping to catch the vampire with one hit at least while he was focused on finishing the slash. That hope was dashed when the flame disappeared without so much as a sound and Vincent rolled away, coming up on one knee with his sword positioned much like a rifle. This was lost on the one with his eyes closed, but the fireballs that soon launched at him definitely weren't. Still in the sky from his jump, Tsukune reacted reflexively and tried to twist, but different muscles answered that call and his wings flapped hard, dipping around his body and twirling him easily away from the jets of heat. With feline grace he had worked damn hard for, Tsukune landed deftly with his legs spread wide, and used the momentum of the fall to bring down his arms again, spreading chaos out to his front.

Vincent knew he had no chance of an aerial advantage at this point, and he would only open himself up if he tried to jump the blades of wind coming his way. Zipping to the side, his whip reignited in a wide stroke that his foe all but floated over with effortless elegance, only to meet more bullets of fire that avoiding turned him right into the path of a flaming arch coming from where he had just been. Tsukune scarcely managed to save himself by dropping flat to the ground, and had to quickly roll away from a very physical stab that would have left him with ventilation for his grey matter courtesy of a gleaming bone blade.

Had he mentioned how much he hated weapons? The scars on his body attested to that, and he had no desire to see if he could add to that collection even though he could heal almost anything thanks to his genus transition months ago. Training with Moka had given him a style adaptable to most any situation, and Mizore and Kurumu had taught him how to use their gifts _and_ how to deal with more than one opponent at once, even when they worked together. He was using that to his full ability, dodging, attacking, and overall simply avoiding everything sent against him with the ease brought on by Rei's harsh memorization training. Some of them were getting much too close for comfort, but they still missed. The wielder of one aforementioned weapon was beginning to lose his cool faced with this.

"Open your eyes, dammit! _Look_ at me when I'm fighting you!"

Tsukune just about slapped himself in the head. He had become so focused on making the other feel physical pain that he had totally forgotten about the _alternate_ route he had available to him! He had spent an entire month learning how to become invisible before he could _actually_ become invisible, labored day and night to trick senses with little more than a glance. Had he not just become exactly what utilized that skill to the fullest? He needed time to recuperate and allow his body the slightest bit of a breather, now he knew exactly how to get that. He stilled, awaiting the next attack, and when he felt the blade moving towards him…Tsukune opened his eyes. There was a pulse no one felt or saw, but he could only smile. Yes, this was going to be fun.

A collective gasp came from those assembled as the winged warrior rushed his opponent with no apparent concern for his safety, and that gasp only got louder when he passed right through the sword swung at him and rippled into Vincent like a pebble in water. Then there was silence. Stunned, open-mouthed, silence.

The oldest spoke the words on everyone's minds. "What just happened?"

"What do you mean, 'what just happened?'?" asked a chillingly well-known voice from behind. "Are you looking for someone?" Brain function screeched to a grinding halt. Heads creaked slowly over to what they knew had to be impossible, but sure enough, Tsukune Aono stood there calmly, _playfully_ even. That may have fooled some, but those who knew him best could see the sweat beading down his neck, and the rapid, shallow breaths he was taking in secret. He was far from alright, but that didn't mean he was going to show it. The only response he gave to their shock was a mock-salute with two fingers. "Yo."

"What…what did you do?" Vincent growled.

The incubus raised his hands innocently. "What did _I_ do? I think you should be more worried about what _he'll_ do." That said, he pointed back to where he had once stood.

"Do you think I'll fall for that?"

He shrugged. "Your funeral."

Crackling electricity growing in strength sounded behind his back and Vincent whirled around with his weapon at the ready. The last thing he expected to see was a mouse. More specifically, a giant, pudgy, _yellow_ mouse with adorable red circles on its cheeks and a jagged tail that looked like it had been through a crimper. It looked…surprisingly menacing for such a cute creature.

The vampire blinked, pinched himself, then muttered, "Bull_shit_."

With a cry recognized the world over, that little mouse blasted millions of volts at the stunned Youkai, who just barely managed to escape the blast radius as smoking earth replaced his previous position.

"This is _not_ happening."

A sizzling buzz hummed into existence as heavy, modulated breathing took his attention elsewhere. Twirling around again—and starting to become exceedingly annoyed at how easily he was being snuck up on from behind—Vincent couldn't help but stare when he found himself face to face with two meters of cloaked black armor holding a glowing red beam of light.

"I find your lack of faith disturbing."

He couldn't be blamed for the way his mouth dangled; neither could the rest of the vacationing students. They were looking at the definitive reason to never disregard an amputee in an Iron Lung, after all. What was supposed to be a quick attack stopped dead against the angrily hissing blade held by humanity's illustration of a dark lord, and the rhythmic sounds of his artificial breaths didn't even indicate any stress.

"Impressive. Most impressive. Obi-Wan has taught you well. You have controlled your fear. Now, release your anger. Only your hatred can destroy me."

"Now you're just insulting me!" Flame gilded Cerberus' edge, and with a harsh sideswipe, went straight through the fictional weapon it was opposing as well as its master. Even when that happened, he was still shaken when the image simply vanished into thin air. Then and only then did he realize what he had just experienced, and his mind boggled. "Illusions? You can use illusions?"

"I could make you sparkle too, if you want," Tsukune snarked with a crooked grin.

Both returned to the fray just as viciously as they had before, only now Vincent couldn't be sure if what was evading him was real, if what he felt hit him was actually there or just a figment of his imagination. His education told him illusions were supposed to be just that, but it also told him those high enough on the hierarchy could _make_ their adversaries feel things for _real_. At this point he really didn't doubt the fact that Tsukune Aono could very well be among those fabled few. His joyous laughter was singularly more disturbing than almost anything else done so far. Skin shredded under a strike he hadn't been able to dodge, but that didn't hinder him in the slightest, it only increased his desire to inflict the same.

Not even closing his eyes helped, as he found out very painfully, but it was difficult to fight someone using the very method they clearly had more experience with. He was assaulted from all sides by what he knew had to be copies of his enemy, yet he couldn't be sure which one was real. Even his supersensory radar seemed to be muddled, and just knowing such a thing was _possible_ put him more on edge than the many incubi out for his blood. Trying to find out which was real by seeing who didn't bother moving away from his attacks was hopeless; they all reacted the _same!_ It was like he was literally fighting clones! After he had brought out his sword he had thought things would rapidly turn in his favor, but that only lasted until Tsukune had pulled out a surprise of his own, something the dark-haired youth seemed to have in abundance.

_I can't believe he's pushed me so far. Any farther and I'd actually have to…_ the lesser noble didn't want to go any further than that, even in his thoughts. To the dumbfound amazement of those watching, Vincent mimicked what Tsukune had done earlier and stopped, seemingly awaiting his fate as his eyes closed and his stance relaxed. Too many things screamed the peculiarity of the action, however to let it go unexploited would be a mistake regardless. Every student of Youkai Academy waited with bated breath as the many replicas converged, and the blood drained from their faces at what happened next.

Youki buffeted Tsukune with unforeseen force as Vincent's previously resigned expression warped into minacious glee, and he could feel the might of the vampire's aura weakening his hold on his mind. Strong as he was, he couldn't compare with a vampire of Vincent's obvious strength, and the images flickered in uncertainty. Not like it mattered in the following few seconds.

For all appearances, it could almost be surmised that Vincent lost all his joints. He moved like no one Tsukune had ever seen before, spinning and twisting not unlike he had when he danced with Rei. That was where the similarities ended. Often relying solely on one appendage rooted beneath him, he flowed in ways that would make a contortionist proud, his uncanny strength matched with the balance he displayed despite the positions and what they segued into. Somehow, he managed to hook his leg around the neck of one of the attackers, and though they were illusions, his body felt the substance. What it couldn't compensate for was the nonexistent weight of the figment in what was clearly a grappling style, which was all Vincent needed to know it was a fake. Youki skyrocketed and everything sputtered once again, where he crushed the neck between his calf and thigh and spun, twisting image into image and plunging his sword straight into the earth upon landing. Straight spines of fire shot out from the ground around him in fountains of flame, skewering nearly every single incubus left before they evaporated into nonexistence.

Vincent was left panting from the exertion of fighting as many as he had while at such a high output without the blood to support it, even if he had eventually decimated them all, and he was pleased to note the goal had been accomplished. One copy remained, with a cut in the side of his shirt singed by a spear of fire, openly putting on view the blackened flesh underneath to the cries of those watching. The swordsman frowned then, more than a bit disconcerted. His flame could become as sharp as any sword, though made of pure heat. Tsukune should have been run through regardless of if he had managed to avoid the brunt, and the burn was hardly second degree, in fact as he looked on it was healing right in front of his eyes!

Excitement was starting to give way to genuine fear. _What on earth am I dealing with here?_

That wouldn't dissuade him. He was a Vampire, a proud member of a proud race, and he was being put to the test! That alone made him want to keep fighting, and fight they did. Flashy shows of techniques and styles were abandoned in the hope of bringing an end to the lengthy battle, and with Vincent constantly flaring his youki, only the occasional illusion was sent to hinder him. Tsukune began switching between keeping his eyes opened and closed depending on what his challenger did, and he could only be thankful he only had to deal with the one.

Fatigue was starting to set in on both parties. Even with his extrasensory radar, Tsukune was making mistakes he otherwise wouldn't, and Vincent had taken more than his share of blows, including a rather nasty one from the thick claws that had torn open one of his sleeves and gouged slices into his arm. Tsukune knew that if he kept making those mistakes it was going to cost him dearly, and the only reason he wasn't bloodier than Vincent was because he had somehow managed to elude the sword's attacks. He shuddered to think of what would happen if he didn't. That in mind, he weaved past a strike that would have released him of an arm had he not, and just as he was about to retaliate…

"Stop!"

The exclamation from out of nowhere froze both combatants, but for different reasons. Vincent because it was Alexander that had called, and he was in no condition to do anything; Tsukune because all it took was a peek through his eyelids to see Alexander currently had his unconscious Familiar by her neck. He could hear the labored breathing of the other vampire, and it was obvious even standing upright was causing him pain, but his pride kept him from going down, and it was his pride that had him holding a defenseless girl hostage.

"Put her down!" Tsukune screamed as his fury took to new heights.

Instead of answering him, Alex addressed his brother. "What are you waiting for? Kill him!"

Now Vincent was torn. He hadn't had a fight like this in ages; he was actually enjoying himself! It would ruin the taste of the victory if it was marred by something as underhanded as this. If he wanted to keep his pride as a vampire, anything less than total domination under his own power was acceptable. Alexander clearly hadn't learned that yet, or desperation was making him blind to it. Seeing the pain etched into his brother's face was enough for him to decide it was definitely the latter. Even Alexander wouldn't do something like this unless he thought he was pushed into the tightest corner he could be.

His decision was made for him when an icicle slid smoothly through the skin and bone of Alex's right shoulder from behind, rightfully earning a horrible cry of pain and all but necessitating he drop Rei back to the scarred earth. Blood poured down his arm from the vicious wound, but Alexander just twisted in blind rage to see who had hurt him.

Mizore and Kurumu were standing before the rest of their group, their expressions matched with Tsukune's.

"I'm sorry, Tsukune. We know you wanted to do this by yourself, but…" Mizore's sentence trailed off, and any ending was made unnecessary under the force of her burning eyes.

"You _bitch!_" the lesser vampire seethed. Properly motivated, just how much power the young Youkai still had available to him was easy to see, and it wasn't comforting. Contrary to popular belief, he wasn't as dumb as they thought. He knew if he took the spike out it would bleed more and make him weaker, but he also knew that if he left it in it would melt and cause him significantly more trouble. He opted for the former, and did so with nary a whimper, even if he did sway unsteadily. He was furious though, that much was clear. "I'm going to redefine what you think of pain!"

No one heard it, but there was a clear sound as reality broke.

Trees shot up in a great circle and closed four people inside their combined canopies, both preventing anyone from seeing inside and stopping anyone from entering. The vampires looked around in confusion until finally their eyes came upon the only other conscious person trapped in with them, and he looked exactly like he had when he had first arrived. Murderous. Any comfort Vincent might have found in the knowledge of Cerberus' fire was lost when no trees suffered from his flames, and he knew they weren't dealing with a new power, but one he had become quite acquainted with recently. Remembering how much power it had taken to overcome the illusions the first time, he paled. The thirst was already more ravenous than normal; he didn't know if he had the strength to break out of this one.

"This is going to end. _Now_," Tsukune declared. He had one trump card above all of the Movements he and Rei had created, something only he had: his experiences. No one could take those from him, and no one could defend against them either. They were his last resort, but he had all the inspiration he needed to make sure they were every bit as effective as they could be.

"You wanted to redefine pain, hmm?" he drawled darkly as he stepped forward, and even though they wanted to step back, Alexander and Vincent found themselves paralyzed in place. Golden-brown irises bored into their very souls, and before Vincent could think to shut his eyes at what he should have anticipated coming, it happened. "Allow _me_."

The screams that echoed from inside those woods chilled the hearts of all who heard them.

Only one other living being had ever been put under the nightmarish charm the two brothers were experiencing, and unlike the Hyakume, they could voice their pain. Images were blurred, but there, moments of insight before the pain associated with it took them over.

A giant thing threatening…something? Someone? It was too distorted to make out, but whatever it was it must have been important, for the next thing they knew it felt like their organs had been liquefied.

Snakes…or something moving…? Bites—definitely snakes—pain…fear…stone.

Torture. Interrogation? No, no explanation, only pain. Fire, fire moving towards…someone. Who? No! Desperation. Incineration. Pain, oh the pain! Blistering, fiery cold pain! Sweet blessed darkness.

A figure…a woman? A rooftop. Sadness. A child. Reaching…pain! Chest…heart…pain…can't….

Plants. Moving plants. Monsters? Teeth, claws, flesh giving way. So much pain…must endure…must reach…so, so much pain…

Someone falling. Shouldn't need to have fallen. Why? Guilt. Emotional suffering. Kindred spirit. Stop! Relief. Surprise. Terrible pain. Body numb, only pain…

PAIN! NO RELIEF. HURTS! DYING. BREAKING! FALLING APART. SO MUCH PAIN! Trouble…new pain—external pain?—someone important…stop! Chest on fire. Stop! Can't breathe. Stop! Can't move. Stop!

Determination. Resolution.

BREAKING!

Don't care.

DYING!

Don't care.

One more…just one more…

PAIN! …No…no pain. DEATH.

On and on it went, injury after injury, suffering heaped upon suffering. Blades, fists, guns, dreams; nothing offered solace. They wanted anything, anything to release them from this hell, and just when they thought it couldn't get any worse, _it_ appeared.

A cemetery? A forest. A…woman?

Silver hair.

So close.

Beautiful.

Red eyes.

Dangerous.

Red lips.

So close…so close.

A gentle push…

Just one push…

_Agony_.

Not close…never close.

Broken.

Heart. Broken.

Pain.

Unending, unstoppable _pain_.

"My pain," a voice called out from the darkness. "This is what you mocked by coming here. _This_ is what my family has gone through to get where it is! I'm not her Familiar any more than I am Ruby's or Mizore's! I'm her _mate_. I'm her _blood_-mate! I'm _theirs!_"

As the man walked into their vision he was the same as all the other images: unclear and hazy. It took a moment for them to comprehend that this time it was because they were crying. Blinking back the tears and wiping them away after finding their arms mobile, they saw his face was just as tortured as they expected theirs were. Then he did the last thing they could have anticipated.

"I'm sorry. I didn't want to have to do this, but the longer we fought the more I realized it simply wouldn't stop. Moka beat you within an inch of your life, Alexander-san," he continued, specifically facing him at the mention. The addition of the honorific was equally mollifying and horrifying. "And here we are again, in the same situation. I don't expect you to understand; you don't have that someone you'd throw yourself into the fire for yet. But _you_," he said pointedly, pinning Vincent under his fierce brown eyes, "have to know that I will do whatever it takes to protect my family…just like you would yours."

That revelation scared Vincent more than many things ever had. "You've been in my head," he whispered in a voice even he didn't recognize due to his screaming.

The faux-incubus flinched back as if slapped. "I'm the one forcing your mind to live through things it never has, of course I'll see things…I only saw a bit, and I'm sorry." The expression that overcame his face then was one Vincent had only ever seen on army personnel too long on tour. "But it's harder now, isn't it? Now that I'm not just some obstacle." He made a hoarse sound in the back of his throat as he fought a losing battle against tears. "It's harder for me now too. To…to _know_ that you have a wife at home waiting for you…a little brother you'll try to help grow even if he won't succeed, to show him he needs to learn from his mistakes…it's…it's so hard." Shaking his head forcefully, Tsukune glared anew at the brothers, and as unlikely as it was, the tears stains made it more menacing. "But I _won't_ let you take this from me! We've worked too hard, gone through too much! I _meant_ what I said earlier."

If the two vampires could pale more than they already were, they did.

Suddenly the darkness surrounding them evaporated and they were back inside the circle of trees. Tsukune slumped to sit on the ground, but they couldn't tell whether he was physically exhausted, mentally exhausted, or emotionally exhausted. Vincent put his money on the last. They on the other hand fell under all those categories, and phantom pain their healing could do nothing against still rattled their muscles involuntarily. If Tsukune tried anything more to hurt them, both knew there was little they could do to prevent it.

Vincent also knew his brother was more injured than him, and he only barely managed to catch him before he fell. The shoulder wound was looking particularly inflamed, and with the adrenaline wearing off his arm was starting to really bother him as well. The wounds they had endured psychologically weren't visible on their bodies, but that mattered little. It was only Vincent's mental conditioning that allowed him to stay upright and not collapse under the pain he knew wasn't his, and it spoke of how powerful it was that even that had only minor effects. Alexander on the other hand, having been knocked out once already and not in any shape to stand in the first place—_and_ lacking the conditioning his older brother had gone through—was less than a sitting duck. There was really just one option available to them.

Throwing the arm of Alex's uninjured side over his shoulders, Vincent straightened as proudly as his wounded muscles would let him. "Come on, Alex, we're going home."

That got the unsteady vampire's attention, and he winced mightily at the minor movement of his head. "But—!"

"No," he interrupted quietly. "No, the time for that has passed. How we are, even the witch-child outside could defeat us." The younger sibling had no response to that. Setting his gaze on the one who had them at his mercy, an unasked question passed between them, and in the silence that followed the forest disappeared.

They scarcely heard the relieved exclamations from the group off to the side; their eyes stayed locked in a battle of wills that had nothing to do with illusions and charms. Finally, Vincent turned away, and with him, his brother, back to the entrance of Youkai Academy. His sword vanished to places unknown.

"Are you going to tell me your name at least?" Tsukune called after them. Gasps came from all around now when the others stopped in their trek, and the long-haired man looked back over his shoulder at him in thinly-veiled amusement.

"I'm named after my great ancestor. My name is Vincent Valentine, son of Isabella, the greatest swordswoman our family has seen since him. You, Tsukune Aono, can simply call me Vincent."

Said person smiled back. "I won't say it was a pleasure to meet you, Vincent, but it was certainly one hell of a first impression."

He was still laughing when they walked out of sight.

When they were honestly and truly gone Tsukune let loose a huge sigh of relief as he turned back to normal. It was over. It was over at last, and he had come out the victor. He had won! He won, and the only real damage was to…. He looked around at the various broken trees, headstones, and landscape varying between frozen and charred. He sighed again. He had won, and the only real damage had been to everything around him. Great.

That was the farthest thing from his mind as he heard the excited shouts of, "Tsukune!"

"OOF!" was really the only sound anyone could make after being tackled by a family happy to see them. Luckily he was only outrageously sore and not critically wounded, so he was all too happy to greet whoever he recognized first. A cold tongue slipped past his open lips and that part was taken care of. He only knew one person who tasted like candy and ice, not to mention the amazing things she was doing with her tongue.

"Hey," he rasped cheekily as she let him breathe again, where he was left staring into her crystal blue eyes.

Mizore frowned mockingly. "You have a remarkable talent for understatement, you know that?"

"Um…I missed you?"

"Getting warmer."

"Is that a good or a bad thing with you?"

She giggled. "Idiot."

"Do you love me anyway?"

She grinned in that innocent, knowing way that was altogether too sexy to be legal before claiming his mouth once more. When that was done, only the shout of, "My turn!" was processed before Tsukune found himself with a mouthful of eager succubus. Naturally, Ruby took advantage of his unawareness too, while Yukari received her customary kiss on the cheek once he was sane again.

When he was eventually allowed to sit up he could see they all had a million questions they wanted to ask him. Still, right then something else needed him more; some_one_ else. For all his skill and bravado, the well-dressed vamp had had the chance to kill the newest addition to their family and had chosen to knock her out instead. Then again, with the power he later displayed, he could have killed most of them before he had even gotten there had he decided to let loose from the get-go. Maybe there was something to whole 'only came for him' nonsense he had spouted. Well, Tsukune had learned to take whatever blessings he could get. One that saved a life was pretty high up there on his list.

That didn't stop the rumble from rising up in his chest as he walked over to her still, unconscious form. Her white hair was strewn all over and around her body, which itself was positioned so awkwardly it could only have resulted from a fall during unconsciousness. God, just _looking_ at her like that made him want to punch something! Knowing it could have been any other member of his family had they stood with him in her place only added fuel to that fire. He snuffed out that urge quickly; the fighting was done and they were all alive, that was what was important.

Though he had spent at least eight hours—if not far _more_—of every day for the past month doing things that made _strenuous_ seem like a compliment, fighting two vampires at once topped that easily, and his body was beginning to let its ache be known. And the thirst, yes, that too was back with a vengeance. Selfless was nothing if not his defining trait however, so he promptly ignored himself and focused back where he should. A careful touch let him know her body had long since healed and she was in no danger at being moved—another blessing; even with her blood's restorative effects boosting what was hampered by his seal, it still relied on him having other blood to work from. Right then it was taking everything he had left to act _normal_, anything beyond that was out of his reach until he fed again.

Sitting back down, he softly maneuvered his sun-kissed companion into his lap and rested her head against his chest. The ease in which he did so raised some eyebrows, but after a month of living with only the other as company, they supposed it made sense. They weren't about to stop him either; they all knew they would like the same done to them had they been in her position.

"Is she alright?" Yukari asked worriedly.

He grimaced. "She is, but she won't be once she wakes up."

That sparked only more confusion. "Huh? Why?"

Rather than try to explain it to them, he gently shook her. After the fourth time, she stirred and started mumbling, and a smile momentarily crossed his face. "Come on, Rei-chan, it's time to get up." The only effect that had was her curling up tighter into him, like she was still a hatchling. He rolled his eyes. Leaning over to her ear, he whispered something so quietly even Moka and Kokoa couldn't hear it. Whatever it was, it worked like a charm. Her platinum orbs shot open and looked up at him excitedly, but it only took a few seconds for her other senses to start working as well. Her bewilderment was as clear as theirs after that.

"Tsukki? Where are we?"

_Here comes the fun part,_ he thought with morbid amusement. "We're back at school. Remember?"

Her face scrunched up adorably as she considered what he said, but they all knew when she found what she was looking for. Her entire body stiffened as her nostrils flared in reignited fury, and Tsukune bit back a groan of pain as her talons dug into his skin unintentionally. Her grip was bruising, and no matter what he had been through before, having long claws burrow into muscle was never a pleasant sensation. He bore it though; he had an acute understanding of what she was going through. When her skin started devolving from brown to scaly grey he decided it was enough, any more and she'd probably set fire to the whole school. She froze when he pulled her to him harder, but it didn't take long for her to start struggling.

"Unhand me, Tsukki! They will pay, I swear it! Let me go!"

He really couldn't afford to lose the blood her nails were liberating, but he couldn't very well let her go on a rampage either. He simply hugged her tighter. "Rei-chan, _Rei_, shhh, it's all right. It's all right, they're gone."

Frenzied draconian pupils looked into his, desperately searching for some other truth than the one that hurt the most. The one that said she had been useless when it mattered; worse, a _liability_. "But…but I…"

"You did your best, that's all I've ever wanted," he continued soothingly as he ran a hand down her lengthy ashen mane.

The dragon collapsed into his chest and bawled. It was the first time she had ever cried in her life, and it was one of the most heartrending things anyone in the vicinity had ever heard.

Ruby was the one that first noticed the crystalline tinkling sound as it chimed ever so faintly around them, but it was only when she looked at the ground around her lover that she saw what was causing it. It took tremendous self-discipline to keep from fainting outright. Mindful of what was going on, she reached a hesitant hand to pick one of them up, and when she did her heart hammered against her ribcage so hard she was sure others could hear it. Her eyes couldn't have been wider as she looked over at the crying myth in the arms of another legendary creature, awed by what she held.

Clutched in her fingers was a perfectly round, colorless gem, glittering majestically in what little light found it. She was holding a _Focus_. That by itself was incredible, what was more was that it had come from a _living being_. Dragon lore was hard to come by, even for someone that had been around as long as the headmaster, so what she knew was basically what he had come across and his own experiences. She knew they were bonded to nature, possibly as deeply as any witch, but now she was witnessing just how much they really were. Their very bodies were conduits for the lifeblood of the earth; their tears formed crystals that without any interference were able to connect to the energies all around them. She idly wondered what would happen when she bled, actually bled rather than simply feed her partner, but quickly banished the thought. To wish harm on any of her family, even one as unique as Rei, was not acceptable to her.

Yukari had seen what she was doing by then, and her response was much the same. Rei was birthing priceless stones with her own _tears_, and by the time she settled down into sniffles against Tsukune's shirt there was a small handful scattered around them. A small _handful_ of what had to be the most perfect _diamonds_ Ruby had ever seen in her life. The only thing hindering their worth was their small size, but to a witch…to a witch, that made them beyond value.

Finding a Focus was difficult; gemstones often worked best, as they had been immersed in their mother Earth for untold generations to achieve their state. High quality gems and crystals, without fail, had some connection that could be exploited, but it took a ritual like the one they had performed for their bracelets for them to truly become able to center a witch's power. Anything of sufficient age and importance could suffice, like the wood of an ancient tree—where the wood wands and staffs of the wizards of common belief came from—but that was in short supply, as no witch would willingly end the life of such a thing just to use its wood. Tsukune's Focus was the smallest one she had been capable of making, and the gem she had used, while not the most expensive she owned, was by far the one of most importance.

Large crystals were the easiest to adapt, but they were in no way inconspicuous. Many witches and wizards had been killed in the past simply for their Focus. Yukari's wand looked innocent, but the fact of the matter was it still ran on the same principle, though with a weaker crystal and a much stronger ritual made possible only by her superior intellect. To be not immediately obvious was to stay safer longer, and that made Tsukune's book more valuable than he would ever think. It warmed her heart to know that even though he didn't know that particular detail, he expressed all the thanks she might have expected if he did.

_And then some,_ she mentally concluded with a giggle. Oh yes, she would remember him _thanking_ her for a long time. _I wonder when I can steal him away for an encore?_

But that was for later, for now she couldn't stop staring at the little pebble she was holding, the one that quite likely _was_ worth more than she made in a year, even as small as it was.

"Rei-san…"

"Rei," a small voice corrected weakly. Said girl was still nestled protectively in her partner's arms, but now she was looking at the people around them, albeit with red-rimmed eyes. "May I have the honor of being Rei to my treasures?"

_Well if that wasn't the stupidest—_ She didn't even bother trying to finish that, replacing whatever ending that could have come to mind with a tender hug that enveloped both her and Tsukune. No sooner had she done that had everyone else joined her, and she had to smile. That didn't stop her from becoming alarmed when she let them go and saw one of her arms wet with red. The source wasn't hard to find. "Tsukune, you're bleeding!"

He cast a dry look at his bruised and bloodied bicep, and didn't bother to tell them the identical state of the other area she had grabbed. Ignoring the pain had been his priority for the most part, but the thirst was really getting to be overwhelming. "I can see that."

His bronze-skinned Familiar looked justifiably mortified. After so long of feeding on her blood and the mass supply of other creatures to help keep his strength up, she had gotten so used to him recovering from even serious injuries after only a few days that seeing things like _bruises_ not heal instantly told her just how weak he was right then. She didn't hesitate to bite open her wrist and shove it at him incessantly, neither did he hesitate to fall into the offering like a starving man at a buffet. The sudden change in events was startling to the others, but when they considered how the two must have lived for the past month, it made sense. They were used to doing what they needed when they needed, so if one of them needed food and the other could provide…it just made sense, especially after a fight. Watching flesh and nerve _visibly_ heal right in front of their eyes never got any less spectacular though, despite having three members of their group that could do exactly that.

As amazing as that was, Ruby couldn't let the earlier revelation go unnoticed. "Rei-sa…Rei, do you…know what this is?" she asked as she placed the precious stone in the girl's hand. Truth be told, she _really_ didn't want to let go of the item, but let it be known that Ruby Toujou was _not_ greedy or materialistic, well, unless time with Tsukune and a certain chained collar was part of the bargain.

The growing young woman surveyed the object in her hands whimsically, almost as if she was resisting the urge to caress it. "Of course," she replied quietly, her normally sure and dark, smoky voice edged with melancholy. "For lack of suitable words: this is a piece of myself." At the looks she received, she almost smiled. "Dragons may be born, but the one from whom our egg comes is not the only one we call 'mother'. We are tied to Nature more powerfully than you can imagine; when we perish, our bodies return to the Earth as minerals. Where a dragon has laid to its final rest, there one shall find no less than the richest deposits of rare ore and gemstones. When we cry, the Earth cries with us; when we die, the Earth honors us; while we live, the Earth empowers us.

"Witches share our bond in many ways, but while Nature may occasionally answer our calls, those humans touched by the mother are never left unheeded. I can only surmise our prideful nature is to blame, just as only it can be held responsible for our near extinction. Had they banded together like the humans, surely more would be around today. Had we lived like the witches in your sanctuary rather than hoard everything to ourselves, perhaps we may still be worthy of the honor that beats through my heart."

No one had anything to say to that. What _could_ they say? Rei took their silence with a smile that showed she understood, and gathered up the glimmering pebbles around her before walking to each member of her family in turn. With deliberate slowness she folded their hands around the stone she had placed in them, only nodding at their thunderstruck expressions. When she reached Yukari and Ruby, she split what she had left into two even piles and wrapped her hands in theirs, leaving two speechless witches in her wake when they saw what she had done.

"I have no doubt you can use those more than I. Distance cannot separate Tsukki from me, now the same can be said for the rest of my treasures."

Yukari was practically bouncing. "Oh Rei, thank you, thank you, thank you ~desuuuuuuu!" She threw herself at the dragon with childlike joy, into a hug so tight even Rei gasped for breath. "Do you know how much better we can make the rest of our experiments with actual _Foci?_" Something stopped her there, and she relaxed her grip as she looked suspiciously at the dragon-teen. Rei had no idea what she was so uncertain of, but she wasn't about to complain when she was hugged again. She became even more confused when Yukari's eyes widened comically.

"Is something the matter, Yukari-chan?"

"This isn't fair ~desuuu! You can't be bigger than me already ~desu!"

A white eyebrow quirked skyward at the belated repudiation, though she supposed it was to be expected. Standing toe to toe, her tanned body stood just taller than the young witch, but not by much. Tsukune had to fight laughter behind his hands at the size his Familiar's eyes went when instead of comparing their height, Yukari reached out and grabbed Rei's _chest_, defining the growing flesh from under her baggy clothing.

Kurumu was quick to investigate, and Rei squeaked when the succubus groped her from behind. "Well whad'ya know? You really are filling in nicely!"

Tsukune hadn't honestly known dark skin could turn the color it was, but that coupled with the look of shock on her face was more than enough to have him rolling on the ground laughing. That turned into a startled choking however—that was joined by the rest of those still looking on—when rather than being embarrassed or something _normal_ like that, Rei promptly shucked the overlarge shirt with one graceful motion, leaving her in only the commandeered boxers that fit her like shorts.

"If you wished to examine my body, you need only have asked. I wear these garments merely because Tsukki seems uncomfortable with my nudity, I myself prefer to go without," she elucidated calmly as she reached for her leggings. The discarded shirt virtually _materialized_ on her from the haste Yukari used to do so, but Kurumu was looking at the young woman with the cocoa complexion admiringly.

"You're going to be a real beauty when you grow up, I can tell," she complimented casually, and Rei preened. "It does irk me that it looks like you'll be taller, just by looking at how much you have to grow into." Stares turned on her, and the blue-haired succubus flushed indignantly. "Hey! I may not know my books, but I know my bodies!"

At first Tsukune only chuckled, but soon that evolved into full-blown merriment that all of them joined.

It was good to be home.

Fate got her kicks by choosing that second for him to come to a realization.

"Wait a minute! Did he say _Vincent Valentine?_"

.

V^^^V

.

Home at last.

He was happy he could even see straight, let alone drive, when he pulled himself and his brother to the car they had hidden outside the dimensional tunnel. Bloodying the expensive vehicle was a small price to pay to not have to walk all the way home, and the second they were through the doors the meeting he both dreaded, and looked forward to, occurred almost immediately. It was lucky for him in that he could barely keep his eyes open anymore and he needed the help—plus he wouldn't have to explain himself right away. Unluckily for him he _would_ have to, and she would accept nothing less.

"Vincent? What happened to you?" shouted a voice he knew as well as his own.

Straining his eyes to focus, he could see her standing before him, her beautiful scarlet eyes wide with alarm. While the pain forced on him hadn't been his own, he could still feel the ache of a heart shattered to pieces. Out of every single injury, none caused torment the likes of that. To see her, his mate, his beloved, finally allowed him to circumvent that terrible pain. It was all he could do not to pull her into his arms and kiss her senseless right then and there, but Alexander needed medical attention, and god did he ever need a drink—of both the living and alcoholic variety. A bed would do wonders too.

"Eva, get the servants. We need to get Alex some help, and some blood." He hated how weak his voice sounded, but nothing could be done about that. Thankfully, she didn't barrage him with questions and instead vanished in a burst of speed. The one good thing about looking like hell warmed over was people tended to get the hint that help was needed and needed _now_.

He collapsed them both to the hall bench and tried to quell his spinning head. Not in all his years of service to the family, or even the military, had he dealt with the kind of pure, brutal, _suffering_, that the Aono child had put him through. He made sure to keep shaking Alexander awake; he couldn't afford to fall asleep, not in his state. If _he_ was having this much trouble, he shuddered to think of what his brother was going through. Initiations into the life they generally lived were often quite harsh, but compared to this it was like being asked to endure a paper cut against having Holy Water injected straight into the heart. To be perfectly honest he was surprised Alex hadn't gone into shock yet. He had the makings of a great vampire, he just needed to grow up a little.

When Eva returned with the mansion's servants he eagerly let them cart off his brother. Even how he was, none would dare try anything. They took good care of their help, but they all knew what the master family could and _would_ do to them if they tried anything. With him out of sight and being taken care of, Vincent allowed himself to slump against the wall tiredly. He was mildly aware of the hands undoing the buttons on his shirt, and when the expensive—and ruined—garment was gingerly tugged from him he fought the wince at the pressure on his still recovering muscles. An eye inched open when he felt gauze being wrapped around his wounded arm, and saw his mate had taken it upon herself to bandage him up.

His wife was a magnificent woman, and even more magnificent a vampire. Shades of platinum-blond shimmered in her pale silver hair at the right angles, setting the lazy curls of her shoulder-length locks into unearthly qualities no matter what the light. Her sharp, angular features were softened in all the right places, and only seemed to enhance the intensity of her brilliantly red, reptilian eyes. He had been enamored with her from the very moment he saw her. Older than him, and thus stronger, he had worked himself to the bone to prove his worth to her. Of course, fate would have it that it was only _after_ all that and working up the courage to ask her for the privilege to court her, that she had revealed she had wondered how long it would take him. Apparently she had had her eye on him for some time as well. The rest was history.

His heart clenched painfully inside him for a reason entirely its own. He loved her, had loved her for a very long time. Had he gotten so out of touch with himself that he would instantly doubt the love of another simply on the grounds of improbability? Worse, because something _else_ dictated it be so? The burning passion he and Eva had felt for each other initially had faded, but was in no way extinguished. Over the years another thing had grown to replace what had dimmed: a deep-seated sense of belonging and true mutual love he knew he would likely never find again in his immortal existence if he lost her. If he would fight to his last breath to preserve what he had now, what would he have done when he was younger? How would he have fought had something threatened them when he was still so reckless and stupid, and just to put things into perspective, had forged their passion into a _blood-bond_ of all things? How would he have reacted had something threatened not only his mate, but his _blood_-mate?

After seeing what he had, _feeling_ what he had, Vincent felt the honest urge to vomit. How had he been so blind?

He would have reacted exactly how Tsukune had.

A delicious smell pulled him from his musings, and he reopened his eyes to the sight of an unfastened, generously sized blood-bag.

"Drink," she commanded, "the boya's not the only one that needs to get his strength back. I brought more; don't worry about taking your time. One of the maids is nearby if that's not enough."

Need enough to lessen the etiquette drilled into him as a child took over, and Vincent nearly demolished the first bag in record time, though Eva didn't seem the least bit surprised at that. After the second was downed and the tremors she had felt him undergoing still hadn't stopped, she became more concerned. When he started on the third with the same vigor as the second, she knew he was practically dead on his feet and only forcing himself awake to drink what he needed under his own power. The bags she had grabbed were twice as large as the ones they usually used as meals, and she had only grabbed three as a precaution. She had only seen him so weak a handful of times and one of those was his fight with _her_.

"What happened?" Eva asked again, softer this time as she smoothed back his long hair. "Did the boya insult an Elder or something?"

It was meant to be sarcastic, but he still gave a small laugh after he had sucked the last bag dry. He would never have survived _that_ encounter, yet some part of him quivered at the association. Dwelling on it was mercifully impossible; he needed rest now that his body had what else it required. Coherent thought was beginning to elude his grasp, but he still had the sense of mind to tug his wife's head to his for a tender kiss. She didn't refuse him, and openly relished the firm hold he had behind her ear. Her sensuous chuckle when they parted made him wish he had more strength.

"Not that I didn't enjoy that, but you're not getting out of telling me that easily, buster."

A long sigh escaped him. "I promise you, I will tell you. Would you do one last thing for me first?" She nodded. "Come to bed with me? Please?"

The vampiress smirked. "Hmph, as if I would do anything else with you like this."

Helping him to their room was child's play for someone like her, and he fell to the bed with a low groan of gratitude. While not late by any stretch, nonetheless she crawled beside him and let him envelop her in his arms. There was no way she was leaving his side anyway. An afternoon nap was always nice, though it would take a while for the adrenaline to wear off after seeing him come in like he did. His eyes were still entirely red, every blood vessel surrounding the irises obviously broken by some unknown force. He had survived, but she could tell he had been deeply affected by whatever it was he had fought. Letting herself lull to the sound of his ever deepening breathing, her eyes had just closed when whispered words passed through half-lucid awareness.

"Evangeline…would you…stay with me…forever…?"

Her eyes snapped open so hard it could have been audible. She lay there for many tense, breathless seconds, until it became apparent her mate had fallen asleep.

_Did he just…?_

What in the unholy rings of hell had happened today?

Sleep came fitfully, all dreams and nightmares centered on not the possible contents of the day's events, but rather the words last spoken. Dreams ran on how to pursue them, while nightmares told her they were just a dream to begin with.

Evangeline Valentine had many questions for her husband, and so help her, he was going to answer them as soon as he awoke.

.

V^^^V

.

In another part of the world, answers were being given to different people. After the significance of the name had been explained to the female vampires present by the ones in the know, and their consequent hilarity over such a thing, they calmly—or as calmly as they could—enlightened their friends to the state of many a large company in the human world; that is: owned by a vampire, if only behind the scenes. A tribute to one of their own made in anything, from a book to a video game, was hardly unexpected.

Tsukune resolved to never look at a video game the same again.

Still, as much as Rei's blood had made him feel more normal in the aftermath of the battle, he was dead tired. The conversations around him were fading in and out of his ears, and he took one last look around what had been a blossoming landscape before he and Rei had reduced it to ice and ashes. Gathering as much strength as he could to perform the newly completed Snow transformation, he waved a frozen hand at the ice that remained, scattering the moisture back to the atmosphere. At least with it gone Rei's presence would be able to heal the flora faster, that was his hope anyway. That was also his last thought before his head slumped forward onto abovementioned Familiar's shoulder—whom was still seated comfortably in his lap—fast asleep.

All banter ceased when the ice disappeared, and it only took one glance over at Tsukune to see they wouldn't be getting anything else out of him until tomorrow at the earliest. That was the only reason Ruby left to inform the headmaster of what had happened, though she didn't have any doubt the man already knew far more than even she did, and she had been there. Meanwhile, the others were at a loss as to what to do.

"Shouldn't we move him somewhere more comfortable?" Kurumu put forward uncertainly.

Rei shook her head as she played with the dark strands of hair that had fallen over her chest. "Do not fret; the stars have been our roof for weeks. If you wish, I welcome you to join us when you decide to retire for the night."

Not about to miss the chance now that Tsukune was finally back, it wasn't much of a surprise that sleeping bags were out that evening.

What came as the surprise was the enormous white dragon found wrapped protectively around them in the morning, and the buds of green breaking out from under the blackened earth.

…

From his tall office overlooking the school grounds, the Exorcist, feared headmaster of Youkai Academy and one of the titled few to bear the name Dark Lord, awaited a certain student's arrival. From the tower where he resided he could see everything laid out before it, right to the bus stop by the trans-dimensional gateway. What he was looking at now brought a grin to his face, though most would view it as disconcerting.

A good portion of the tree-line leading away from the girl's dormitory had been reduced to cinders, carving a swath of death through the scenery that was rather frightening to behold. Since the dragon had come before vacation started, many of the trees had been showing marked improvement in health, to the point where the feel of the eerie institution as a whole could almost be sensed as changing. Flowers bright and fresh had been known to bloom outside the girl's dorm in particular, flowers that would normally be associated with the human world and not any of the deadly or carnivorous variety native to Youki-infested land, yet they were greeted with admiration and care. Healthy grass extending off to the coastline had become a frequent hotspot for picnicking couples as they enjoyed their vacations, and even the few animals that called the secluded grounds home seemed happier with the revival of their environment.

Now, scorched nothingness marked a long divider, but even only a day after it had been made, greenery could be seen pushing through the ashes of those gone. He chuckled ruefully. The boy was a constant amusement to him, and the true harbinger of change in a world that needed it desperately. From the heart of a vampiress to the near-extinction of dragons, nothing was left unaffected after _he_ touched them. If only the classes knew how much they were acting differently simply because of _his_ mere existence around them. The maintenance crew never ran out of work either.

Fairy Tale's goal had run directly counter to that of the academy, but that once fragile hope beamed brightly because of a diverse group of friends unwilling to abandon one another in the face of insurmountable odds. It was so very refreshing to the priestly man. Things would change, and for the better, all because of them.

He knew who was entering before he even opened the door, so he didn't bother turning away from the window. Plus, he loved freaking out the kid.

"**Well well, the camper returns. Did you have fun, Tsukune-kun?"**

"Gah! Don't _do_ that!" cried the irritated teen.

The Exorcist shifted back to get a good look at him, and he had to admit, he was impressed. If what had been worn yesterday was any indication, most of his clothes had been scuttled over the month-long stay, so he must have grabbed something from his room. The clothes were, by all definitions, unspectacular, but the body they covered certainly wasn't. A defined physique was clear, even better than when he had left, and the longer hair was to be expected. It was the way he held himself that gained the most attention, and the headmaster didn't bother hiding his dark smile.

"**I see you've recovered from yesterday's foray. All went well, I hope?"**

"If by 'all went well', you mean, 'were you nearly killed by a self-important jealous moron and his brother in front of most of the school', then yeah, I guess things did go pretty well," the sealed vampire shot back with a roll of his eyes.

"**Ah, but young Ruby-chan drew a much different picture. According to her, you, and I quote: 'sent them limping away with their tails between their legs.' I take it it was the same one as before?"**

Tsukune's scowl deepened. "Yeah. I don't know what to do; I hope I gave them enough of a reason to stay away from Moka, but I just can't know for sure! Isn't there anything you can do? This is your school, isn't it? Maybe if you made the Grand Barrier—"

"**It doesn't work like that, Tsukune-kun."**

He sighed heavily as he ran a hand through his thick mop of hair. "I know, I know! Look at what happened though! If we need to rely on attacks like _that_ to stand a chance, someone could end up getting seriously hurt!"

"**If I understand things correctly, you also placed a significant handicap on yourself. You wanted to test yourself, and so kept Moka-chan and the others on the sidelines. I think you underestimate what you're all capable of. I hear of certain projects being done as well, and the one completed wasn't even used,"** he pointed out factually.

The brown-eyed youth raised a finger to protest, but it died on his lips. "Okay, I'll give you that. Why'd you want to see me then? Here to put restrictions on any more trips to Paradise?" The headmaster's glowing eyes sparkled with something akin to—dare he think it—mischief, and the chuckle was just as creepy as ever.

"**Of course not, I have a feeling any time you spend there will be beneficial to all of us. After hearing of your impassioned speech yesterday however, I thought I should help you with your brave ambition. It warms my heart to hear students so dedicated to protecting their school."**

He _really_ didn't like the way that was said. He should have known all those compliments were a set-up for something; now the other shoe was going to drop. Fate was about to screw him over again, he just knew it.

"…What're you going to do?" he put forth hesitantly.

A perfectly tailored, all too familiar black and gold uniform was lifted from behind the large desk, and Tsukune blanched.

"Have I told you how much I _loathe_ you lately?"

Again, the headmaster only smiled. **"It's been over a month now. We were long overdue."**

Despite himself, Tsukune found himself smiling back.

…

.

**Author's Notes:** Finally done! Yeesh, I should know better than saying I'll get it out within a certain time, because then Life decides that my schedule isn't hectic enough! I'm sure a lot of you know the feeling. So anyway, thank you all for your patience. Just in case you didn't know, FF seems to be deleting all secondary punctuation, such as a question mark following an exclamation point, etcetera, so if you see a sentence that looks weird in the earlier chapters, or this one, because of punctuation, that would be why.

Don't you think the headmaster looks totally awesome in the flashback picture? He's got an Assassin's Creed thing going on there, and besides, writing him is so much fun! He's manipulative and creepy, but also funny, and you know everything he does has a higher purpose that in the end will help both him _and_ them. He's a fun character, and that makes anything involving him fun!

Big thank you to I'MNOTCRAZY1 for the proper Latin translations of the spells used in the last chapter! Since you didn't comment on the second sentence of the first one, I would assume that one was mostly correct. If it isn't, I'll definitely change it if you give me the right wording. As you guessed, I only have an online translator. Latin isn't my native language, neither have I taken seven years of it in school, so I'm not the least bit ashamed to ask for assistance in that area from someone more knowledgeable than myself. Thank you again!

Again, the encouragement has positively blown me away. Thank you everyone! One anonymous reviewer thought I was demanding reviews, but let me be clear, I'm not demanding reviews, and I would _never_ withhold an update until I reached a certain number of them. Do they make the writing easier? Hell yes. Do they keep motivation high? Definitely. Would I hold a chapter hostage just because I didn't get as many reviews as I wanted? Hell _NO_.

Just wanted to be clear there. I basically write for you guys, so hearing that kind of makes me feel like I'm putting out the wrong kind of vibe in my notes. That's not the kind of person I am, and I'm sorry if I ever gave an impression to the contrary.

So once again, thank you all for your continued support, and I hope you'll all keep giving it!

…

**Outtake Theatre**

Then and only then did he realize what he had just experienced, and his mind boggled. "Illusions? You can use illusions? What _else_ can you do?"

"My Kamehameha's still rusty; the situation hasn't called for me to suddenly get an uber eye bloodline that will develop even more uber-powers as circumstances demand and completely disregard the fact that a man who, at the time of his death, was even blinder than the one going blind, thus taking his worthless eyes would _not _suddenly make him even more uber-powerful than before; my reiatsu doesn't have any hidden surprises that change without explanation; my arch-nemesis' name doesn't sound like a supermarket and the deadliest spell I have in my repertoire is _not_ 'Abracadabra'. I could make you sparkle though, if you want," Tsukune snarked with a crooked grin.

Both returned to the fray just as viciously as they had before, only now Vincent couldn't be sure if what was evading him was real, if what he felt hit him was actually there or just a figment of his imagination. His education told him illusions were supposed to be just that, but it also told him those high enough on the hierarchy could _make_ their adversaries feel things for _real_.

Getting hit by a coyote on a crudely-built rocket, smacked with an overly-large mallet pulled from nowhere by an oddly-proportioned rabbit, thrown in a highly-improbable judo maneuver by a semi-aquatic mammal wearing a charming brown fedora, and attacked with beam weaponry by cuddly forest animals with logos on their bellies, made him know either those things were real, or he was on a _really_ bad trip.

When a bearded Texas Ranger appeared in front of him, Vincent nearly lost control of his bladder. The man France had surrendered to at a mere _glance_, the man the _dark_ was scared of, the man who did indeed build Rome in a day, the man who literally _beat the odds with his fists_, the man who had more myths about him than any vampire, was cracking his knuckles.

Vincent grabbed Alexander and ran for the exit as fast as he could.

Illusion or not, he wasn't stupid enough to try and fight _him_.

…

LOL, funny or not, I wanted to write it. Sorry to HP fans. No disrespect, but I've always found Avada Kedavra funny, and Voldemort really sounds like it could be Moldy-Mart or something. Someone once said something in a review about making Tsukune the next CN, or something to that effect, so I thought it'd be funny to write him in one as himself.

Any characters mentioned are properties of their respective owners. Any person mentioned is himself, and therefore, not my property. To give credit where credit is due, a sentence talking about Darth Vader and an Iron Lung was used in Perfect Lionheart's story _Partially Kissed Hero_, but that's it. I made it my own, but the idea for it came from there.

Thanks for reading and reviewing! I'll see you next chapter!


	20. Responsibility

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Rosario+Vampire, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story. Simple enough, ne? Just don't copy from this story and we're all good!

**Warning: Mild lemon content. Just warning you.**

…

**Responsibility**

.

Alexander Valentine would be the first to admit that he wasn't the best fighter there was, or even the best fighter he knew of in his limited existence. He would be the first to announce he had much to learn about the world around him, and definitely the first to say that—as much as he may kick and scream otherwise—he respected the accomplishments of his brother. To be perfectly blunt in fact, he _envied_ them. Vincent was charming, calm, and frightfully capable, even in the midst of battle. To his younger brother, those traits were only acknowledged beyond refute by his mate, a vampiress lauded for her strength, beauty and sheer _presence_. Evangeline had been nigh unapproachable, and those that did were often received with a haughty smirk and raised fist. None had ever walked away under their own power after she was done with them, and it was clear she had been playing more than anything else.

He had seen his brother's infatuation with her, and at the time, pitied him. He had only been a child back then, but even he understood what happened to people that messed with her. Only, that wasn't the way things worked out. Vincent had _waited_. He trained, he fought, he did everything he could that he might have ever thought had the slightest probability of improving his chances. To this day, Alexander wasn't sure he knew everything his brother had done before finally risking himself before her, and she...she had simply offered him her hand and inclined her head. Her smirk had still been in place naturally, but her eyes smoldered with mirth and, more importantly, _desire_. It was a look Alexander had only come to recognize later on in life. He didn't know how long after that—where, or even _if _for that matter—they had fought, but for a vampiress like her to recognize Vincent...he knew his brother was more powerful than he had ever thought.

He had chosen a different path. _After all_, he had rationalized, along with most his age, _I've got all the time in the world to find someone. Now's the time for some fun._

As he lay in the plush bed that had been commandeered for his recovery, his chest and shoulder swathed in bandages and another damnable intravenous in his immobile arm, Alexander Valentine had never regretted that decision so much. He had taken pride in his appearance, as he had every right to do, and had never rejected the advances of an attractive female beguiled, either knowingly or not, during any of his many escapades. Sometimes things had gone smoothly, as they were using him as much as he was using them, but sometimes...sometimes there came the cases when they said those blasted three words and begged him to stay. It was always harder if they had been together more than once, if he had thought them worth the time to impress more than he already had; harder in the sense that they fought harder to keep him from leaving, not that it was any harder for him to do the leaving. He had never felt anything but lust for them, so even lovers seemed too intimate a title.

Now, now Alexander regretted every face he ever left behind, every face that had tearfully asked why, and every face filled with untold pain as they said those terrible words that should never have been uttered towards someone like him. Back then, he had thought he deserved the words simply for his being with them, as if he had every right to be despite not showing anything of the sort to them. Confronted with pain beyond his wildest imagination, he now knew what each of those faces had been going through, and just what exactly he had done.

His good hand placed itself over the unseen wound as he stared at the ceiling. While his body hurt terribly, nowhere so much as his heart. He knew he loved his family, that was a given, but what he had felt, even vicariously, was so strong, so pure, so desperate that he knew the repercussions of rejection would be enormous. To actually feel that rejection was a completely different matter.

He had fallen out of consciousness soon after the servants had administered the second dose of much-needed blood, and even then he dreamt of the pain.

_"'Tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all,"_ he quoted mockingly. _What a load of crap._

He had felt love, and _lost_ that love, only through a forced experience, but even that taste had left such an impression he knew he would never forget it. He would never, _could never,_ look at Tsukune Aono the same way again. To have endured through that, bore that pain, and continued on until he _did_ reach the love he so desired...Alexander could do no less than offer his complete respect. Pain like that couldn't be _faked_, pain like that had to be _experienced_, just like he had said afterwards.

And what had he, in all his brilliance, done? He had threatened that, and with his threatening had opened the seal on Pandora's Box. It was only a matter of time before what had happened reached the right ears, and when it did, not only would his failure be brought to light, but also Moka's renewed 'eligibility'.

He _was_ a monster. An S-class, super monster of the worst proportions, and he didn't mean Vampire either. A broken heart could be healed, eventually, but until then it hurt with a force unlike anything he had ever known. He knew, thanks to all those faces that looked just like he felt, that he had caused this same pain more than once, and he had tried again, the latest through an attempt to destroy a love that had been forged _through_ that pain and more.

Alexander Valentine had never been more disgusted with himself.

Willing himself up, he fought the phantom spasms and snatched the blood-bag from its hook before downing it himself. His shoulder still hurt something fierce, but he wasn't going to let that stop him. It was healing rapidly; if Tsukune could work through pain harsher than that, so could he. After fashioning a makeshift sling to support his limp arm, Alex hobbled his way out the door and through the halls of their huge manor.

At one time, most of the vampires of the country had been in one mansion, but the sense against that idea won out in the end. Now they got together regularly, but didn't stay under the same roof. Things could end very badly for them if they were ever discovered, or if something happened. It was better for them to stay scattered. They all had significant wealth, so it wasn't like they were abandoning any luxury. The Valentine manor easily showed that.

Entire wings had been devoted to certain members, so as to give the illusion of independence in a shared environment. Vincent and Evangeline had their own, as did he, and finally their parents. Even the servants each held their own quarters amongst the many rooms, and wanted for nothing when they weren't working. The main foyer and surrounding halls were a shared area that held the illustrious dining room used for family meals, as well as a ballroom as extravagant as any royalty's that could be used for gatherings. There were still other Valentines alive, but those outside their mother's immediate family held their own homes.

Where he was heading was the last wing, the one that had been solely equipped to deal with the continuation of their skills. Every conceivable piece of equipment from all kinds of cultures and countries could be found somewhere within the huge expanse of rooms and floors, from a fencing field in one room to a fully-equipped firing range in another. No piece of physical development was left unchecked; they were Vampires, they were to be the _best_. It was a rare case when noise wasn't heard coming from _some_ part of the training wing, for far from refuse, they _encouraged_ those hired as servants to better themselves constantly; as a matter of fact, they _rewarded_ it. Being a Vampire's servant could be seen as a mark of honor in some circles.

If someone _was_ using a room, Alexander didn't notice it. For the first time in his life he was focused, wholly and completely. Stretching his sore muscles, and ignoring the pain most of them transmitted, he worked into the routine he knew as well as his own name. Vincent overshadowed him greatly in skill, but most of that had to do with his advanced age; Alexander too had been training to use the Cerberus weapons that were the Valentine trademark. He had never given too much thought to his coming-of-age test that would cement his position among their bearers, but now that was all that was on his mind. It was as much mental as it was physical; if his mother deemed him ready he could try early, just as if she thought him lacking he would have to wait. The former seemed farfetched when even Vincent had gotten his pride handed to him on a platter when he underwent the final test of skill Isabella administered herself, but there was no time for thoughts like that.

His arrogance had decided he would simply return to Youkai Academy after a month in traction and easily defeat the little boy who had only gotten lucky before. With no Moka to save him he was as good as dead, especially when Vincent had all but unknowingly offered his services. What a fool he'd been. Tsukune Aono clearly hadn't spent the month bedridden like he had; no, he had done exactly what Vincent had for Evangeline. He didn't know _what_ he did to train, but he had come back more powerful than ever, with a resolve so iron-clad even a Cerberus' flame fell short of scratching it. That train of thought was only kept as a reminder; his mind still ached whenever he tried to delve deeper into what the student might have kept hidden, and became debilitating if he focused on it too long. It served its purpose though.

No longer would that arrogance blind him to the ability of an opponent. There was no 'superiority' before battle, only after would that be decided. He had gone to the academy with the thought that no one could best him simply because he was a Vampire, and not only had a boy nearly defeated him the first time, those he had thought 'zeroes' had wiped the floor with him the second time! Even _Vincent_ had admitted to the expertise of the Black and White Duet, and that was _not_ something to take lightly. Making a mistake like that against opponents that _weren't_ inclined to have mercy was a mistake he wouldn't live to make twice.

So Alexander trained, he trained harder than he ever had before, with the silent resolution in the heart that had come to know pain to continue until he stood worthy of the pride he had once held...and maybe, just maybe...worthy of the pride of another.

Never again would he be responsible for a face filled with agony, unless it was an enemy.

Never again would he rush into things blindly; strength without strategy was useless.

It felt...good...to be able to make those confessions to himself. As he sat in a heap on the ground, sweating profusely and gulping in his every breath, he was able to smile. Just a small, victorious smile, yet it felt like the first one he had truly earned in years.

"Alexander?"

His back went rigid in an instant. He only knew of one person with a voice such as the one that addressed him. The low, aristocratic clap of foreign nobility in a timbre borne from power, privilege, and pride at having earned them, could only come from the one woman he would always fear. His mother.

He flinched then, without her even saying anything more. He had disgraced their family, and he would have to own up to it. It was all he _could_ do, and more importantly, all he would now allow himself to do. Against his body's protests, he pushed himself to his feet so he could at least stand before her. He expected it to be the last time he would be able to so in the foreseeable future after all.

Isabella Valentine was an imposing figure of a woman, let alone a Vampiress. Centuries old, and yet her face had lost none of the youth of her earlier years, more akin to one in their late twenties than one whom had watched over a hundred pass the world by. Hair white as snow fell down her face in a cropped cut that rarely left both eyes visible, which under the seal of a small silver rosary nestled between her generous cleavage had been turned the most fierce of blue. With her frequent forays into the human world to monitor their businesses, she felt most comfortable with her oppressive power sealed, not like that did anything to hinder the potency of her glares. An obviously customized fencing leotard showed all of her impressive curves, and just as impressive height, and once again Alexander felt three years old in front of her.

"I'm here, Mother," he responded respectfully.

There was no way to miss the way her eyes lingered on his wounded arm before finally turning back to his, and he swallowed as lightly as he could.

"Seldom do I inquire as to your whereabouts; you are a grown man and I respect that. However, I would know where you've been for the past month, or I will be most..._displeased._" The one eye uncovered narrowed as she said that, and Alexander hung his head.

So he told her. Everything. What he had done, what had happened, what he had decided, and everything in-between. By the time he was finished he was on his knees and didn't dare look at her for fear of what he would see in her eyes. It wouldn't have been the first time she had looked at him with disappointment, and of all the times he knew he deserved it now.

His head jerked up in shock when he felt a hand grip his shoulder fondly. His mother, Isabella Valentine, was on one knee down with him, and _smiling_.

"You _may_ have lost us Lord Shuzen's favor, but it was you who gained the chance by offering to go when Vincent refused, even though you knew of the power his daughter held. You may have been overconfident because of her seal, but you still went back knowing she could be released. You may have lost not once, but twice, and yet I consider all of that worth little compared to the lessons you have learned. Know this, my son: if you gained nothing but those and lost our entire fortune, it would be money well spent in my mind. Wealth can be regained, honor can be restored, but no amount of either can buy what I see in you now. I'm proud of you."

Those four words rooted Alexander to the spot. _It's been...so long since she's said that to me..._ He said the only thing he could in response. "Why?"

She just smiled wider. "What you have felt is the weight of _responsibility_. You've seen with your own eyes and felt with your own heart the consequences of your actions, and that is something every immortal can only learn on their own. Consider yourself fortunate of the avenue it took; myself and your brother learned it the hard way."

Just the thought made him pale. "There's a harder way?"

Isabella nodded. "You have never been to war."

The words hung in the air long after they were spoken. Such a simple statement, yet with such profound implications. "You know, back when Vincent's namesake still walked the earth, a Vampire didn't have to go far to find the bloodshed they sought. When the warring years began, a Vampire was in their element. We have the power to crush cities should we so desire, but all that Vincent wrote of during his days as the protector of that village so long ago, was that he had never felt more fulfilled than when he finished a battle, and turned around to see those tiny buildings still standing behind him. He was no saint, he had bathed in the blood of his enemies for many years, and yet the simple act of guarding those lesser beings brought him a sense of purpose he had been lacking in the bloodlust.

"When you have troops under your command, immortality suddenly becomes something it never was before: _fragile_. To rush into the lines of the enemy with swords held high and the rush of ecstasy burning your blood...such glamour is for storybooks. I won't lie to you, Alexander, I have killed, so has your brother, and I would be foolish to think you haven't...other monsters at the very least. You realize quickly why we Vampires are set above the rest. There is no feeling comparable to the surge of lifeblood flowing into you from a downed foe, ripping their life from them as it still beats in their chest, but I can tell you this: there is also no feeling like seeing a man or woman you have talked with, lived with, and fought with, being felled beside you.

"Some Vampires wouldn't care if it wasn't another Vampire—other beings are _below_ them after all—but it is often those that fail to realize we are _not_ invulnerable." He winced as she said that, and he knew she saw it. She had probably been expecting it. Seemingly unruffled, the vampiress went on to say, "We can live forever, theoretically, but there are still things that can bring our existence to an end. It can be such a lonely existence too if we refuse to see the good others can bring, and what disappears when they do. Would a world ruled by vampires have seen the surface of the moon? Would we have taken the fleeting seconds of this immortal journey to arrange the tautness of simple string into an instrument capable of music? If we went on, and on, and on, we might eventually wipe out every other race on the planet to sate our destructive tendencies, but then what would be left for us? By that time, would we settle down? Make towns? Prosper? No, I have a feeling that if we dominated this Earth we would soon turn on each other, just as the humans do so repetitively. If we never questioned the call of our instincts, we could rule the world, but it would be a world of ash.

"You have been given a gift I had to see death for: experience, but without _experience_. You've seen the heart of another and now _know_ that the only thing making them different from you is something neither of you had any control over. It could very well have been you born with a lesser lifespan and modest abilities; you could have even been _human_, and they would still feel the same way you're capable of feeling. Our natural disposition is a difficult thing to overcome, but it's not impossible. It's what has made the Valentines different for generations, and that started with the first Vincent. The Cerberus weapons have been wielded by us for hundreds of years, but without the understanding of how they were made they are just another tool of destruction. The only reason they were forged was because one vampire protected a small town with everything he had, and because of that, a _human _blacksmith peerless among his class, worked _years_ of his short life to make what we now take for granted. Make no mistake, even _if_ they were made of something other than demon, they would still be weapons without equal, and some have never been recreated since. The blacksmith did all of that just to show how thankful they were for his protection. Could Vincent have done that on his own? The simple answer is no, not unless he took the time to learn, and how could he have done that if he had destroyed the town when he first came upon it?"

Alexander honestly didn't know. It was an easy truth to swallow after what he had been through. It made him all the more thankful for having gone through it in the first place. He understood now, he could truly say he understood.

"Your father and I have been together for many decades now, and I love him more than my life," she continued, "but there was a time, long, _long_ ago," she chuckled, "when I was your age as well. Promiscuity was looked down on then compared to the freedom the world now boasts of, but you're only young and stupid once, now aren't you?" He couldn't help but laugh at her wry remark. "Women weren't normally welcome in the _human_ army, but wherever there is war, you'll find at least one vampire. To humans back then, a woman was laughable in war, which made me even more dangerous, and my commander—my _vampire_ commander—was all too happy to use their stupidity to our advantage. There would be no recognition; officially none of us existed at all in any war effort. We were Black Ops before the word even existed. So there I was: young, foolish, and on my own with a squad of other Youkai with the same taste for blood."

She sighed heavily, and while he did know it, her son was still a bit startled by how much age suddenly showed in her youthful sapphire eyes. "I won't say I fell in love, but until you're there, you can't know the loneliness of the battlefield. I started caring for them a great deal more than I should have, one in particular, and even though he wasn't a vampire and I had no intention of staying with him...nature took its course." Alexander cringed appropriately. Even if he could admit his mother was an attractive woman—which went to reason then that others would find her even _more_ attractive—there were some things no child wanted to hear, no matter how old they were. Isabella just chuckled again. "Quiet, you. As is the way of war, we fought, and eventually...he died. They all did, because of a stupid mistake _I_ made. Simply because of what I am, I'm the only one that survived. Did that mean I was greater than them? No, all it meant was I was different. I killed every one of our ambushers in a haze of fury I'll never forget, but it brought me no satisfaction. If you had succeeded in killing Moka Shuzen's blood-mate...do you know what would have happened?"

Alex nodded somberly. "She told me herself. I can't see any other possibility now, but even hypothetically, what was supposed to be would never have been. Even though I'm like her, I would have killed a part of her. Losing that...the pain..."

"It's something that stays with you always," his mother agreed. "It doesn't matter what you are, wounds of the heart hurt the same. Everything has consequences, and we're long-lived enough that sometimes we even get to see how those consequences play out. If one vampire hadn't thought to give up his days of needless bloodshed and protect a small town that unknowingly held a master blacksmith, we wouldn't have the weapons that set our family apart. If I hadn't lost my team, I wouldn't have seen just how terrible war is. If you hadn't gone back to the school with only your brother, who knows how much longer it would have taken you to recognize love? Who even knows if you would still be alive? So many different variables, and just one small choice could change how everything works out."

It was a heavy weight to bear. He had figured out much of it on his own as he worked ceaselessly through his conditioning that day, but to hear it put so plainly, and _realistically_, in front of him made for a healthy dose of appreciation for his circumstances. Just one choice made by the one who had them at his mercy, and both he _and _Vincent wouldn't be alive. He had known it, but it was still humbling.

Isabella took that break to stand. "So I suppose the choice you face now is, what are you going to do?"

She watched with pride as her son's shoulders squared, as his lips tightened and he brought himself back to his feet. For the first time she saw his posture not full of self-importance in his heritage or his family, instead firmed with resolution all his own. Determination, not arrogance. It filled her with joy. He had left a month earlier a conceited little boy, and come back a young man. She would have to remember to thank this 'Aono' child should they ever meet. The name sounded familiar for some reason too, like she had heard it mentioned before...but that couldn't be. She shrugged it off.

The red gaze that met hers was unwavering as he put his good hand over his heart, probably unconsciously. "You know the answer to that."

Isabella Valentine smirked triumphantly. "Then rest for now. Drink, heal, and prepare yourself."

"For what?" he asked in sudden confusion.

Her smirk widened dangerously. "For _me_. Your desire for strength is genuine, and I intend to help you as much as I'm able." She nearly burst out laughing at the look that overtook his face.

"B-B-But not even _Vincent_—"

"Your brother took longer to come to the same realization, and he came to terms with it in his own way," she interrupted. "Plus, he had not slacked as you have, chasing skirts. His focus was clear. Now so is yours, and you don't know how much time you might have until that strength is needed."

"B-But..."

This time she simply turned away and began walking to the door, but just before she exited, she turned back one last time. There was no playfulness in the hooded expression, but perhaps the slightest bit of maternal concern hidden under the cold ruthlessness of things to come.

"And Alexander...there is one other reason. From the second you fell to your knees, you were ready in my eyes."

Silence resumed, and the vampiress shifted gracefully out of the room.

It took a long while for the man left there to regain movement, and strangely, he felt no elation, only a sense of indifferent foreboding that bordered on fear.

He was ready, but no one could ever truly be _ready_ to face the tender mercies of Isabella 'Ivy' Valentine.

.

V^^^V

.

So far, Tsukune's day could have gone better.

He had woken up surrounded by his still-slumbering family, and in one case quite literally _surrounded_, as Rei had chosen to curl up around their circle in her true form, which would probably never fail to awe him. That part hadn't been so bad, admittedly. He may have succumbed to a cliché moment and simply sat there, watching his family's faces as they slept, but clichés existed for a reason. He wasn't exactly surprised that he had fallen asleep outdoors, but that they had all joined him was a very pleasant one to wake up to.

His heart may have turned to goo when that clichéd part of him decided he should kiss Moka's nose, and her peaceful expression had momentarily scrunched up into one of the most adorable things there had to be. He made sure to give a tender good-morning greeting to the silver artifact resting under her chin on her pillow too, and he was _positive_ the eye-like jewel set in its center had _stared_ at him like a piece of _meat_ the entire time afterwards, as he repeated the action with every one of the sleeping young women, careful not to wake them of course. Kokoa had been absent, but then again, that didn't really surprise him. Actually, that part of the day hadn't been so bad either.

A warm bath wasn't something he had been deprived of in Paradise, what with the pool and Rei's fire, but the shampoo and conditioner, on the other hand, was something else entirely. Another whole month that had gone by without a haircut, and no decent way to keep that hair clean other than water, made him very thankful for the modern conveniences. He would still need to go back there at least once to pick up the bedding, books, and homework that had been left behind in the mad rush, but on all other visits he could now bring whatever he wanted. He was looking forward to that, as he knew exactly what he wanted to do the next time before his friends saw it.

As for his hair, it didn't look that bad now that it was properly clean, and he had eagerly changed into one of the outfits Mizore and Kurumu had picked out for him on their shopping trip. He had thought it would feel good to be back in appropriate clothing, and yet he found himself yearning for the barefoot, shirtless style the second he was back out in the heat of the growing day. He was pretty close considering his shoes had been destroyed in Paradise, leaving him with only flip-flop sandals for his feet.

That was when things had started going downhill, and did they ever take a plunge.

From there, he knew he had to go see the headmaster to check in his return, which was a bad thing in and of itself. Not that the headmaster was a bad person, quite the opposite in fact, if a tad—a _lot_—creepy. Every time they met up however, he knew his life was going to become more complicated. True to form, it had, oh had it ever. That one thing was enough to thoroughly ruin the good day that had been building, even. It was going to get worse too, because they would be having another meeting sometime in the future to iron out the details, and another meeting meant more complications. Not like his year had been anything but already; just par for the course after the first two.

Thinking back to the scene he had awoken to, he couldn't really say those complications hadn't been worth it.

So there he was, trying to hide the plastic-covered suit as he dashed back to his room. There would be enough problems when he had to show it off when school resumed, he didn't need it wrecking what remained of his summer vacation. Mercifully, that prayer was answered and his day was spared of getting any worse because of it. He had even gotten replacements for his ruined shoes with the new apparel, and for free, since it was a school-appointed position! It was almost enough to balance out everything else that had happened during the meeting.

Naturally, the thirst chose that moment to voice its disapproval of him not seeking out the first source of warm blood the second he awoke, like he had been doing all summer so far. That thought of hunger was what reminded him that the others might have woken up by then, and the thought of breakfast inevitably brought to mind what they would want. He blanched.

He had been away. From Moka. For a whole. _Month_.

Moka. Had gone without his blood. For a whole. _MONTH_.

_This isn't going to end well_, he thought with a grimace. It was hard to keep the grin off his face though.

It was just too good to be home.

...

Those that had never left had talked long into the night with the one still conscious that had, and so they all awoke later than usual. Well, _most_ of them. Combining that with what they had gone through the day before, the majority was in no hurry to get up as it was. Sadly, sunlight demanded their release from the sandman's embrace, and there were no curtains to block the dastardly device from its mission. As eyes blearily opened to the new day, one thing quickly gained their attention.

Tsukune was awake. Not only that, but Tsukune was washed, clothed, and currently pinned under a very amorous Snow Woman as a clearly amused dark-skinned teen looked on. 'Pinned' might not have been the best term, for that would imply he was trying to escape, and his hands were doing anything but, much to the violet-haired Youkai's most vocal approval.

Jealousy was actually the last thing on Moka Akashiya's mind when she woke up to that. As she was, she really didn't care, just so long as _she_ wasn't ignored after! A pink eyebrow was raised inquisitively at the only Familiar of the current group, and Rei grinned impishly.

"Yes, they woke me up as well. Truthfully, I do not know if they were even aware of my return to this body. To be clear, 'twas my intention to inform them should any garments appear to be loosening."

Moka blushed then, as did the two so immersed in each other's lips they hadn't noticed the large shadow that had once covered them was gone. They parted reluctantly, and even from afar the look on Mizore's face wasn't hard to decipher. It was the same lust they _all_ had bottled up, after all. That didn't hinder the smugness amply shown at her start to the summer morning. Tsukune shifted uncomfortably at the looks sent his way. The 'piece of meat' feeling from earlier had returned with a vengeance.

"Um...good morning?" he started hesitantly.

If he was being totally honest with himself, he had expected to be tackled. It wouldn't have been the first time. That wasn't what happened. Moka shimmied out of her sleeping bag, stood up clad in only a very comfortable pair of sweatpants and an old shirt, and then calmly walked over until she was right in front of him. Maybe it wouldn't have looked so intimidating had he not been sitting down—and still suffering from the physical repercussions of Mizore's none-too-innocent ministrations—but he doubted that would have made any difference. She took noticeable delight in his discomfort, and ever so slowly knelt down to his level, where she stuck her nose into the juncture of his neck and shoulder with barely restrained need. He shivered as her breath caressed his skin and she inhaled his natural scent longingly, totally immersed in what she had desperately missed. Her fangs traced the soft flesh in her favorite spot and earned a low moan from the man under her, while the others present tried with varying levels of success to hide the effects that sound had on them.

Hardly audible, she whimpered, "Please, Tsukune?"

At that moment, she could have asked him to strip naked in front of the whole school and he would have done it.

Since his voice was currently inoperable, his consent was given with a nod of his head, whereupon she eagerly dug her lengthened canines into her lover's neck. The sharp sting he had been without the whole month earlier garnered another noise from his throat, the one he had previously been forced to stop himself from making after their first night together, for obvious reasons. The time apart had made those reasons unclear, and once again the rest of the group shifted in place.

Fingers clawed in fertile ground, muscles tightened, fangs grew impatient. The thirst didn't want to _give_ blood, it was demanding it _back_. Inflamed senses breathed in the pheromone-heavy perspiration beading on his blood-mate's skin as she drank him in, and his whole body ached for her. With her practically straddling him now, Moka felt that acutely. There was no embarrassment as she pulled away, and wouldn't be, because she wanted him like that for her. Or rather, she just _wanted_ him. Seeing his full fangs exposed when she looked at him sent a thrill through her, but then she remembered what she had just done, and likely what he _hadn't_.

Luckily, Mizore was just as quick on the uptake. Steadying him by his side, one of the loose shoulders of her sweater rolled away as if it knew what she was thinking. "I'm here, Tsukune. Take what you need."

The ice maiden didn't know if the length of time since she had last been bitten had made her more sensitive than normal, or if he had just not bothered to control the potency; whatever the case she shuddered violently against him when he took her offer. If she ever tried to describe what it felt like, it would actually be pretty self-explanatory. It was like a month's worth of pent-up desire released itself all at once and she was helpless to do anything but enjoy it. She was just glad she hadn't showered that day yet. Walking there might be a problem though.

When he was done she smiled lazily and rolled her gaze to Moka. "Okay, I'm tide over for now."

There was no misinterpreting what _that_ was meant to convey.

"Hey!" Kurumu pouted as she pasted herself to Tsukune's unoccupied side. "I'm not! Are you still thirsty, Tsukune?"

He didn't dignify that with a verbal response.

She did though. Quite loudly.

Out of mind but not out of sight, still watching with rapt attention, a small witch was muttering curses as once again the succubus failed to control herself and transformed in her very apparent bliss. While she understood the fact that she was way too young to be safely bitten like Tsukune needed, and _way_ too young to revel in the act most people would associate with the products of his bites, that didn't change the _other_ fact that she was very much a pubescent teenager whose hormones occupied a large percentage of her growing body. For now, she could only look on in envy. Her comfort was in the knowledge that that would change in due course. Another comfort revealed itself when the only other person in their group who looked her age sat down beside her.

"It looks rather...enjoyable, does it not?" Rei murmured quietly, and Yukari froze. Upon closer examination, the telltale signs were all there in the other girl's eyes, right down to the repressed curiosity she knew was in her own. She could have cried she was so happy.

"Oh finally ~desu! Someone that knows my pain!" she rejoiced as she hugged the disguised dragon with glee. Strangely enough, no one turned to them at the exclamations, though to be fair they were pretty preoccupied. The young witch stopped when something occurred to her. "Wait, I don't get it. Tsukune drinks your blood all the time, why don't you just let him bite you?"

Dark cheeks became that much darker. "'Tis true that Tsukki frequently partakes of what I proffer...however...this body...'tis...'tis not yet ready for the acts it so desires. I should not even be _thinking_ about such things yet but...it _burns_ within me." She sighed, and in a demonstration of remarkable self-control, with it went the frustration mounting in her body. "Until the time comes when I can safely act upon those impulses, 'tis better for me to make the initial wound."

"Dang, that sucks ~desu!"

Rei smirked at the line. "Indeed it does."

"So I guess that means we're both in the same boat then, huh?" Yukari wondered aloud as she sat back and watched the succubus not-so-subtly enjoy her destined one's bite.

"'Twould appear so. I believe the phrase is, 'misery loves company'?"

The witch's laughter finally succeeded in drawing the attention of the others, mostly because Kurumu had been released and was now recovering on the ground.

"I think we missed something," Ruby stated in bewilderment.

From where she had fallen, the blue-haired vision of sexuality mumbled, "Whatever it was, it was _so_ worth it."

Both younger members shared a look between them and smiled innocently, which was enough to warrant Tsukune's concern.

"Oh no, don't you start that with me. I _know_ that look! That look is _nothing_ good!" He had come to know one of its cousins very well over his time in Paradise, and it was and always would be associated with pain. More specifically: _his_ pain. The pure smiles only broadened, and the former human slumped in defeat. "I just know this is gonna come back to bite me; I don't know how, and I don't know when, but I just _know_ it."

Moka seemed to take offense to that, and slithered back against him sensually. "I'll have you know that's _my_ job," she whispered huskily, and Tsukune shivered.

"You're _really_ not helping me right now."

Her replying grin was completely unapologetic, as was the grope to the growing bulge under her. Only his superior reflexes allowed him to muffle the resulting groan into her shoulder. Really, he should have remembered he was dealing with _sexually frustrated_ Moka, not his usual mild-mannered mate. For some—easily identifiable—reason that didn't bother him one bit. That may have been helped by the heady scents of Mizore and Kurumu that were strong to the point of suffocating, not to mention Moka's own. Her smile told him she _knew_ that.

"Would you like me to move then, Tsukune?" she asked as her hot breath hit his ear. She knew what would happen if she did, and she knew he knew what would happen if she did.

The inhuman rumble that spawned from his chest made her, and the others within earshot, tremble with longing, and the air in her lungs lumped in her throat when he pushed her down firmly into his lap. Those honey-brown eyes she had come to love burned with the same yearning that had been in hers for weeks, and had the setting been different there was no doubt in her mind that they would both be in significantly less amounts of clothing in very little time.

Only when they managed to pull their eyes away from each other were they able to notice the others had already left, likely to get cleaned up for breakfast, and more likely to give the vampiress some much needed time with her blood-mate. Both felt blood rushing to their faces when they saw that even the _sleeping bags_ had been picked up and they were none the wiser to _anything_.

"Your room or mine?" Tsukune asked at last.

Grabbing his hand, Moka all but dragged her lover the short distance to the women's dorm.

...

The door had barely been shut and locked before the Blood Sage found himself pushed against the nearest wall as lithe hands crawled under his shirt and warm lips pressed forcefully to his. Her nails bit into his chest as he grabbed the back of her neck to pull her closer, not that she needed the encouragement, and she moaned approvingly into his mouth. With practiced ease he turned his head to the side to grant deeper passage and she eagerly copied the action, which began the heated tangle of tongues and teeth as they clashed together with increasing force.

Only the slightest pause for breath allowed her to grip his shirt properly, and before he knew what had happened she had pulled the article over his head and away from them, where she quickly took advantage of the extra skin newly visible. One of her legs curled around his as she leaned up into him to further deepen the kiss, not to mention the very welcome friction her slight motions gave to their nether-regions.

Her smile was decidedly lustful as she stared into the burning hazel orbs of her lover. "Is that a stake in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?"

A playful growl was her only warning before she was pushed to the opposite wall and attacked much like she had him, but her mind was on a mission, and she was not about to be swayed from it.

Tsukune blinked when he felt his pants pool around his feet. He spared only a second to flicker his eyes downwards, and grinned roguishly at the proud smirk on Moka's face. "You have five seconds," he warned dangerously.

She pouted innocently before dragging her tongue up his throat in what could hardly be interpreted as anything if not sexual. "Five seconds to what, lover?"

Not one second later was she trapped between his body and the wall, with the proof of his arousal pressing into the wet spot growing on her sweats. "Five seconds to do whatever you need to while I draw a silencing ward. Just you, me, and nothing to stop us from being as loud as we want."

The vampiress shuddered just at the imagery. "I'll hold you to that."

His laugh was low and husky, breathed past vocal chords choked with testosterone and need. "Rei had me memorize everything Ruby gave me in that book. I'll admit, at first I didn't understand the uses for the ward circles in the back, but now..."

Perspiration beaded down her skin as she panted deep breaths, every one only bringing in more of the airborne intoxicants coming from their bodies. "Ruby taught them to us too," she wheezed brokenly as she desperately tried to stop herself from damning the consequences and taking him right there, soundproofing or not. "Chalk's on the desk. You have five seconds."

They broke apart in a mad dash, one for the desk, the other for the fridge. Moka was eternally grateful for Ruby's foresight in the contraceptive department, because even though it was unlikely, it was still a possibility she'd rather not risk right then. The vial was downed in short order and she was kicking away her sweatpants when strong arms wrapped around her from behind and sharp teeth began teasing her nape. Those by themselves had her impatiently grinding back into him, more so when she quickly discovered his boxers had gone missing. The knowledge that there was a very naked Tsukune Aono behind her, and thus out of her view, was more than enough incentive for her to break the hold, as much as she was enjoying it. It was simply a bonus that the change was also more comfortable for her, because while she was extremely proud of her long hair, it severely restricted her head's mobility when it was trapped between two bodies. Right then, moving her head was very important to the young vampiress, as shown when she proceeded to devour her lover's mouth with all the control she was known for in her desire for his blood.

In a word: none.

Hands groped wildly, bodies rubbed with abandon; the smell of Moka's musk was all Tsukune's nose could focus on, the sheer _urgency_ of her wanting snapped at every one of his vampiric instincts. It had happened once before and ended with little fuss, mostly due to the circumstances at the time, and true, _this_ time it was self-inflicted restrictions that had gotten in the way of any form of relief, but Tsukune had never denied the frustration spawned from being away from his blood-mate for any extended juncture, nor would he deny his awareness of the same thing the rest of his family would experience, said blood-mate included. He could practically _feel_ the tension in her muscles, but for the first time he also felt mild trepidation as those muscles defined themselves on her body with every undulation of her stomach. Now the tone of her beautiful curves was every bit her own, and not just the result of what her personality sealed.

He could tell from the moment he arrived back that she had been involved in the fighting—not like it wouldn't have been instantly noticeable from her injuries—but with that was Alexander's condition, and from that he had been able to surmise Moka and Kokoa had put up one hell of a fight. It was difficult to associate Outer Moka with physical violence, but then again, she seemed to have no trouble in her current act of assaulting him. Not like he was complaining, or ever would.

Her thin, seemingly delicate fingers dug into his sides with force enough to shatter stone if he was making any guesses, reckless in her quest to gain purchase for further contact. One strong leg had wrapped around his waist while the other balanced skillfully on the floor, where she used the combination to great effect in spurring their arousals. He could feel her moist heat against him but as they were anything further was impossible, and it was driving them insane.

Moka cooed lustfully as her lover's hands encompassed the toned flesh of her backside, and gasped when he lifted her careful stance easily from the ground, supporting her fully with his arms and pressing her harder into his erection. His strength was nothing to scoff at even sealed. The normally kind woman developed many colorful words to describe the thin barrier of cotton still covering her right then.

"Bed?" he asked hungrily as his eyes darted to the object in question.

The pink-haired goddess wasn't willing to wait that long. "_Here._"

She gave a disappointed whine when he set her back down on the floor, an excited whimper when her undergarments were tossed down roughly, and finally a long, drawn-out moan when they were against the nearest wall and united physically once again.

"I missed you! I missed you so much!" It was clear in her tone she wasn't just talking about their intimacy, but that didn't stop her from grinding as hard as she could into him, swaying her hips in a manner that showed just how much control over her body she had, and doing _very_ interesting things to where they were joined. Tsukune took over soon after that, cementing his grip on her hips and conceding to her incoherent mumbles of "_more"._

The young man was entranced by the way her body moved under him; how her head lolled from side to side in reverent bliss only to stiffen and hiss when he hit a particularly sensitive spot; how her shirt clung to the swell of her breasts as it dampened with sweat; how her thighs trembled as she locked her ankles at the small of his back, entreating him deeper within her. When her eyes weren't closed to savor the satisfaction, orbs of the darkest forest green gazed with heated approbation into his very soul from behind candy colored bangs. Her fangs were on full display as her teeth clenched and stomach fluttered, and all too soon the anticipation that had been building her up to a hair-trigger snapped.

As the glorious heat reached its crescendo a shudder ran through her entire body, from the bottom of her toes to the very tips of her extraordinarily long hair, of that she was sure. She was almost embarrassed at how quickly it had happened, but with their bouts of lovemaking being the definition of few and far between, which was to be expected in a relationship as new as theirs, she simply hadn't been able to hold herself back. It _had_ been over a month since she had last felt her one and only blood-mate. From the way the muscles in his shoulders were tensing, she knew it wouldn't be that far of a stretch to think he had just barely managed to hold off his own. The look in his eyes though made her feel like the most beautiful woman in the world, and her raging libido gained an unneeded, but most welcome boost.

"_Now_ the bed," she teased, and giggled when he complied, with her still supported by him and still _very_ connected. A contented hum rumbled in her throat as they fell to the bed, embedding him even deeper than he had been before, but she was far from sated. Twirling her hips unexpectedly, her grip on his waist forced him to his back as she sat on top of him proudly, reveling in what the motions had done to her sensitive womanhood. A negligent toss rid her of her sweat-soaked shirt and just as easily her bra, and she licked her lips as she felt him throb inside her. To _know_ how badly he wanted her was like a drug to her system, and there was no need to deny that part of her more carnal nature.

"And _now_, lover, it's my turn to take care of you."

Needless to say, what a vampiress wants, a vampiress _gets_.

...

The conversation elsewhere was on that very same topic.

"So none of you are upset that Moka got him first?" Yukari asked in honest curiosity.

They were all seated outside in the school's courtyard, enjoying the labors of the cafeteria's cooks and the blossoming summer day. Now that they were all showered and changed—with the exception of Rei—everyone seemed to be in good spirits, despite the two missing from their ranks. The young witch's question earned shrugs from those it was directed at.

"Why would we be? It's not like we let him go without at least getting something to remember him by," Kurumu stated smugly, and a smile played on Mizore's lips.

"And it's not like it's because he cares any less about any of us," the Snow Woman added. "You may have seen the good parts, but I had actually been up a lot longer than all of you. Tsukune...he kissed me good morning when he noticed I was awake, and just hugged me when I crawled into his lap. We talked...just sat and talked and watched the rest of you sleep. Did you know how hard it was for him to stay in Paradise, especially after Ruby left?" They glowed at the thought, while the headmaster's aide blushed prettily. "Did you know he had nightmares about not being here when it mattered?" Their glow paled dramatically, and when they looked to Rei she only nodded somberly. She remembered those nights well. "I'm sure I could have snuck him away for some time alone, but I couldn't bring myself to stop snuggling. One thing led to another..." she trailed off as red dusted itself on her pale skin, but recovered soon enough. "...a-and soon you're all awake, but what happened before was just between us. He loves us, plain and simple."

"Plus, Moka's had to go a _month_ without his blood, which had been her primary source of food beforehand. With the new steps in our relationships, both her bloodlust and her _regular_ lust have all been directed at the same person. Not a good thing to go without cold turkey," Ruby said with a wince, one shared by everyone else present.

"Yeah, so getting his blood after so long would be the last straw when it came to her restraint," the succubus acknowledged factually. The others stared at her. "Aw com'on guys, I'm a _Succubus!_ Vampires aren't the only ones that crave something! I just don't need mine to _live..._though I wasn't about to give him up without getting a bite first."

Now they were all beet red, much to Kurumu's amusement.

Yukari recovered first, and true to form, had the other chief concern on her mind since her curiosity had been sated in regards to her vampires. "Anyways, now that the _immediate_ threat has passed, what should we do for the rest of our vacation?"

The coral-eyed masochist thought about that for a moment. "Well, we'll need to keep up with our lessons, right?" she asked with a look over to their self-appointed trainers, who nodded. "Now that time's not so pressing, we can work on some of the less important ideas we had earlier, and now we have _Foci_ to work with too!" The two witches shivered in unrestrained glee.

"_And_, now that Tsukune's back we can actually _enjoy_ some of it! Maybe see what he was up to in Paradise!" the sapphire-haired beauty exclaimed happily, and Rei seemed inordinately pleased with the idea.

"I would love to show my treasures my cave," she offered graciously.

"On that note, we haven't discussed where you're going to be staying while you're here, Rei," Ruby noted. "Are you planning on sleeping there and coming here in the morning? Or maybe after classes end for the day?"

The dragon snorted contemptuously. "Surely you jest! My place is with Tsukki. I will have to return to eat properly, of that I have no illusions about, but with the ability to take this form, my place is here."

"Hmm, I guess I could handle a roommate. I've been housing five others in my room for the past month, having one full-time couldn't be that bad."

She cocked her head to the side inquisitively. "Of what do you speak? As I just said, my place is with Tsukki. We are no strangers to sleeping together."

_That_ set off a whole lot of choking.

"Rei," the oldest witch coughed as she wiped away the spit juice from her chin, "what _exactly_ do you mean by that?"

"What else would I mean? We are quite comfortable falling to sleep together. He is a most...exquisite source of heat," she finished with a fond smile. The collective breath of relief confused her mightily. "Did I misspeak?"

"No, no you didn't, Rei," the ice maiden consoled quickly as she patted the girl on the back. "Let's just say...our minds weren't in any position to take that the way they should have."

The dark skin of the teenager's features scrunched up in bewilderment. "Which begs the question of what other way there is to take it."

Only profound willpower kept them from laughing until their sides hurt, though the effort did gain them faces the most intriguing shade of vermilion.

It was Kurumu who broke first, expelling all her held-back air in huge guffaws while she pounded her fist on the table. "Oh God I...I just...just can't take it! That was priceless! Let me put it to you this way: our minds are in the collective gutter, and when you said 'sleeping together', we heard, 'doing things on a bed that generally involve a healthy lack of all things clothing'."

Watching the dragon's ensuing atomic blush and stuttering denials missing much of what makes a sentence coherent was highly entertaining for everyone involved, except for Rei herself, naturally.

"You do realize how easily I could shed these two articles in his presence, do you not?" _Or how often I have done so? As if Tsukki would be anything but honorable; pshh._

Their laughter turned into horrified stares, but not for the reason she thought.

"Do you mean to tell me...you've been wearing that ratty get-up...for the past...entire...month?" the illusionist asked darkly.

"Admittedly, they looked much better when I was first given them. They have suited their purpose admirably however, as did Tsukki's."

When the state of Tsukune's clothes upon his return came to mind, they could only be thankful Rei's had survived as relatively unscathed as they had. Nonetheless, such a travesty could not be allowed to continue, not as long as there was a fashion-conscious Succubus around!

"That's it, first stop today: Mononoke Arcade! We get to go on a shopping trip!"

Despite the enthusiasm around her, silver eyes just stared back blankly. "You do realize that for the better part of this year my body will be in a constant state of growth?" she deadpanned. "'Twas to my understanding clothing of the kind you suggest requires definite dimensions; you would merely be wasting resources."

The look of shattered hope would have been comical had her desire to help not been honest. It was still pretty funny.

Rei patted her shoulder in what she hoped was a comforting manner. "Now might be inappropriate, however you have my word that when my body stabilizes we shall have that trip."

She had to hold back the chill that went down her spine at the sudden gleam in her friends' eyes.

That promise in place, Kurumu rubbed her hands together maniacally. "You do know what that means though, right?"

And while all of her instincts were screaming at her—_Back away slowly, make no sudden movements! They can smell fear!_—she found herself saying, "...No?"

"Well...you're about Yukari's size now, and it shouldn't take you long to reach our height," she explained as she pointed at herself and Mizore. "If you get any taller than that before you even out you'll have Moka and Ruby to choose from, so between all of us I'm sure we'll always find something that works! Looks like we do get to play with clothes today after all!"

A small sliver of fear wormed its way into the dragon's being, and she cursed herself for not listening to her gut when she should have. Still, it did sound very logical, and any time around her treasures was time well spent in her mind. "I see no problem with that."

"We might want to go to the Arcade anyway," Ruby pointed out. "Her hair does have that natural untamed look to it, but with a little feathering and styling..."

"Oh, oh! Edge it up a bit more, show off her eyes! I like it! A haircut is definitely in order!"

"My...hair...?"

The bluette gave a dramatic gasp as she reached over to drape an arm over the younger girl's shoulders. "Rei! We've failed you! I love Tsukune with all my heart, and he knows how to take care of himself...for the most part...but he's still a guy! We're women! Practical is all well and good but sometimes you've just gotta dress up and watch the jaws fall! Just look at you, you can make _this_ look cute! A little finessing and no one could deny how pretty you are!"

All of her previous doubts vanished in the warmth that blossomed in her chest. Nothing puffed up quicker than a draconic ego. "Pretty?"

"Oh Rei, when we're done with you you're going to look _stunning_, I guarantee it."

The rest of the day passed rather quickly after that, and they didn't even bother trying to find Moka or Tsukune.

It would be early evening before they saw them again.

...

Tsukune Aono awoke from his nap to the tantalizing smell of something cooking. That was the only thing that kept him from being disappointed at finding out Moka was no longer in his arms, as had been the case when they had finally settled down for aforementioned nap. Blinking blurrily, he tried to focus in on the world around him, and smiled when he spied the human-shaped form standing in front of the small oven of her kitchenette. A frown crossed his features when he realized something wasn't right about what he was seeing, and more blinks proved that thought right when he saw the woman at the stove had _silver_ hair. When his nerves suddenly alerted him to a weight in his hand he grinned lazily, for what should he find there but a glittering rosario.

He knew she heard the blankets move, knew she felt his feet touch the ground, but still she didn't turn around, nor even try to when he molded her back to his chest. Instead, a warm smile came to her lips as she felt him through the overlarge shirt she had thrown on to cook, and nuzzled his head with her own when he placed it in the crook of her neck.

"Hey beautiful, long time no see."

Her only response for a time was a breathy sigh as she tried to melt backwards into him, and in compliance with the unspoken command he simply held her tighter. The silence was comfortable as they stood there, swaying to an unheard beat as her creation simmered on the stove, and Tsukune was loathe to break such a moment. Then came the hushed words of, _**"I missed you." **_He laid a gentle kiss on the side of her neck in wordless apology, and she shivered despite herself.

"You know I missed you too."

A pat at his hands told him to loosen his grip, and she turned and pulled him down for a kiss so deep he almost forgot to breathe. Black spots danced in his vision when she let him go and he couldn't stop the stupid grin from breaking out. "Holy..."

She smirked triumphantly as she moved back to the pot. _**"Come, I made us dinner."**_

With blood from her backup stores in cups and the meal divided, the two sat down to eat in only the barest of coverings. It was only when they were finally facing each other that Tsukune was at last able to see her face. The longing smoldering in her burning ruby irises was exactly like what he remembered from the rosario that morning, and he gulped noisily.

"I-Itadakimasu..."

Her eyes never left his as she murmured the same.

The food was amazing for its simplicity, though he expected nothing less from the incredible vampiress, and all too soon the delicious sustenance was gone. Of course, during it he also had to try to ignore the unseen sensation uncomfortably akin to someone trying to burn a hole through him with nothing but their eyes. Then, to his utmost surprise, Moka calmly stood and began walking off. Giving a mental shrug, he bent down to clean up the table, only for a pale hand to wrap around his wrist.

"Hmm...?"

_**"Leave them,"**_ she said brusquely, with both her tone and her movements oddly strained.

Free from the overpowering aroma of the food, Tsukune's enhanced senses chose that time to take notice of the _other_ scent heavily pervading her, and had to commend her self-control. Thus, it was Moka's turn to be struck breathless when he tugged her to him and kissed her senseless. It was a slightly dazed Moka Akashiya that stood before him when he pulled away, and his hands trailed to the hem of her shirt, gliding under until he could grope the firm flesh underneath, and pulled her pelvis to his. Her heated gasp was ample motivation for his arousal, which had been growing steadily already.

"What do you want, Moka? Tell me, and I'll do it," he whispered.

Those eyes honed in on him with unadulterated lust.

_**"Bath first, then bed. I swear I'm going to get back every drop of the sweat I'm feeling right now with interest, and we're going to make what you did with Ruby and Omote look like foreplay, even if we have to redo every last thing you did with them. You're going to need every ounce of energy that seal has left you, because I don't plan on letting you go anytime soon, **_**lover**_**."**_

She groaned imploringly when he kissed her again, _hard, _and when he leaned over to her ear the shudder went straight to her core as he hissed,

"_As you wish._"

.

When their friends saw them again the seal would have yet to be replaced, and the smile she was wearing couldn't have been pried off with a crowbar.

Not to mention the slight limp in her step.

.

V^^^V

.

Evangeline Valentine stared at her mate, and prospective blood-mate, in astonishment.

Her cat-nap the day before hadn't been very long, but Vincent had slept without stirring until late the following morning. There were moments when she was scared for him, as he grimaced and flinched like trapped in a nightmare, but all she could do was wipe his head soothingly and try to keep him comfortable. When he finally awoke whatever dream he had been having was scattered to the winds, but that didn't keep him from remembering what had happened to put him in his situation. Just seeing the worried gaze directed at him was enough to make him lower his head and clench his fists.

He had been a fool, and he told her as much. After another dose of blood to make sure he kept his strength, he started his story. His wife's face went through many different stages throughout it, all of which he recognized, and not all of them good. The one it settled on at the end was shock, and that was something he had seen on her only a handful of times. She had been alive a lot longer than him, and had seen things that made what he did in war look like a schoolyard tussle. To shock _her_ was almost as hard as trying to shock his mother, and that was saying something. She was naturally unruffled, and only sights like her husband falling through the door bloody and bruised could cause her significant alarm. This was a close second.

"So...you're saying a teenage _boy_ fought _you_ to the point of a tactical retreat?" Her skepticism was clear as day, and with good reason.

"It was incredible. It was bright and sunny one minute and then it just _changed_. A thunderstorm came out of nowhere! _Ice!_ In the middle of summer _ice_ covered the ground and froze whole trees _solid._ One look in his eyes and I knew he was going to fight to the death for her. I almost wish you could have seen it, because looking back, I'm amazed at what he accomplished."

"And he had a girl with him?"

"Oh yes; never, _ever_ forget the girl. You'll never believe this, but he claimed her to be his _Familiar_."

Eva's pale skin turned chalk white.

Vincent didn't notice, instead his retelling just continued to become more animated. "Their movements were sloppy in places, downright amateurish in others, but the thing is that _didn't matter!_ It was like they _knew_ what the other was going to do, and one would always be there when the opening became too obvious. They even had coordinated attacks they could start without a word to each other!"

She tried to hide her shaking hands. "And you say he used magic in one of them, right?"

"_True_ magic. _Witch's_ magic! He called lightning to cage us and wind to a directed mark!"

"Was he holding anything when he did this?"

He nodded. "A small book of some kind, but he never opened it; why?"

A sigh of relief escaped her. "So he displayed an honest-to-God Snow transformation, the magic of a boundary being, and the full abilities of an Incubus, _with_ a Familiar that never transformed _once_."

"I knocked her out before she could," he expounded.

"A Familiar that breathes _fire_."

That stopped him short. "Yeah, but that's just like us Vampires. Even sealed or transformed we always keep some of our real traits, like our strength and senses. She could probably breathe fire because it's an integral part of her when she's normal. She was damn strong too, I'll tell you that."

"A Youko would never subject themselves to being the Familiar of another, so she couldn't be that. You don't have _any_ idea?"

"None that explain her power, but the real threat was always the boy. _He released Moka's seal, and she, _she_ bared her neck to him._"

Evangeline smiled fondly. "So it's true then, she found her blood-mate. Can't say I'm surprised really; with the restrictions of her family I wouldn't tell either."

They lapsed into silence as he took one of her hands into his two, and eyes of the darkest red gazed into their soft feminine counterparts. His thumbs rubbed over the back of her palm tenderly in what would have been a loving gesture had she not known how nervous he suddenly was. Her own heart experienced a rather startling input of adrenaline when she recalled what he had last said the day before, and when she thought of the last time he had acted like this in front of her. It had been right before she had offered her hand so, so long ago, before he had known she had been keeping an eye on him as well.

"Evangeline...I made a mistake."

Well, she certainly hadn't expected those to be the first words he said.

"I didn't believe them. I fought because Alexander needed the help, but things just kept escalating, and the fight, oh _the fight!_ It's been years since someone outside the family challenged me like that! I just had to keep fighting, and he just kept fighting _harder_. By the time I realized I should never have played around in the first place I was too weak to go all out, and he...he still had _more_. That last illusion, it was _horrible_, and he just stood there and told us it was what he went through to get where he was. An eighteen year old _kid_ went through things that could be used in a goddamned _torture_ technique!" He took a hoarse breath to calm himself when he felt Eva put her other hand over his to try and stem their convulsions. "But more than that, I felt how much he loved her. I _felt_—_FIRST. HAND—_how far he was willing to go to protect his family, and I came to a sickening realization."

"What was it?" she asked sympathetically. She could see it was eating him up inside, and it was almost as unnerving as herself being shocked. Vincent was always calm; even in battle and when his bloodlust appeared, he never gave into anger, his movements always had purpose. For him to recognize he was wrong to such an extent was always hard for him to take, because that meant that purpose had been wrong too.

"...I had been fighting a younger version of myself."

Her heart thought that would be a wonderful moment to lodge itself firmly in her throat.

"W-What?"

"I was fighting _me_. Would I _play around_ if I thought I was fighting to protect _you?_ Of course not! I would fight until I couldn't move! Against any odds! I would rather _die_ than do anything else!"

Tears were streaking down her face, yet while most thought them to illustrate weakness, she made no attempt to wipe these ones away. These were happy tears.

"I was fighting someone I should be fighting _with_, not _against!_ He was able to make a decision most _vampires_ struggle with and...I didn't want to be one of them any longer. I found you earlier than a lot of us find our better half's, and I knew from the moment I saw you I needed to be with you. Everything I did from then on was for you; when you agreed I'd never been happier. I needed you, I _still_ need you. If I ever lost you I don't know what I'd do, and I for one never want to leave. I hate asking this of you...but, would you? Because if you still feel like I do, I want to be beside you forever, until either we go up in flames or the world does. Will you give me that honor?"

She grabbed his neck and slapped him so hard his jaw cracked.

"That was for doubting me," she jeered murderously. He had only winced at the well-deserved hit, but when she thought it was healed enough she surged into him, welding their lips together so hard they couldn't even get air through their noses. She couldn't care less about that, she was too focused on showering her mate with intense, lip-crushing kisses to worry about something as inconsequential as air. Her hands were only removed from his head to unbutton her blouse as she pushed him back to the bed, but soon enough he had flipped them over and was trying to recover while her large chest heaved from between a parted shirt under him.

"God, woman, I swear you'll be the death of me," he panted. He struck a rather strange sight, what with one of his arms wrapped in bandages, but it wasn't hard to support himself over her. She however was something out of a fantasy; pale skin flushed with excitement, half-dressed in formal office wear, but her most prominent features were the gleaming fangs exposed ominously and the scarlet serpentine eyes with pupils thinned in desire.

"Take it as a yes and shut the hell up," she breathed huskily.

Instead he threaded his fingers with hers and held them to the bed. It was a pointless act, since as he was she could overpower him even more easily than she could otherwise, but his goal was accomplished in the increased pulse of the woman staring fearlessly up at him. "I want to hear you say it."

She smirked. "Say what?"

"Say it," he repeated hotly. "Say yes."

The staring contest resumed, both vampires silent in their struggle, until eventually Evangeline's look softened as her grip tightened on the hand of his uninjured arm, where she rolled the sole piece of jewelry he wore amid her trapped digits. "You didn't use it, did you?"

He turned his head to the side, away from her gaze. "I told you: by the time I knew I would need it I was too weak to use it. If I had tried I could have damaged myself permanently, and when I realized I _should_ use it I...didn't want to."

"Why?"

A smirk identical to her own was now sported by him. "Other than the fact that it felt like I would be using it against someone exactly like me, I wasn't going to come back to you possibly disfigured just because I had to prove a point. You deserve so much better than that."

Eva laughed warmly. "I'm glad I took you off the market when I did. Too many unsuspecting women would have fallen to that silver tongue of yours."

"You would know, wouldn't you?" he joked as he waggled the appendage at her, and she readily took the invitation and caught it in her teeth before devouring the lips so close to it. He broke it with a gasp and reinforced his hold on her hands, lest she try that again and his testosterone damned him to stupidity. "You minx, quit dodging!"

She rolled her eyes, but from her that was as good as a victory. "Yes, oh great and powerful vampire," the silver-blonde intoned mock-seriously, which was of course ruined by the overly stern face she made as she said so. When she had gotten all the giggles she could from the look he gave her, her expression morphed into something much more pleasant, and at the same time lovingly solemn. "Yes, Vincent. Yes."

Compared to his usual apathy or amused disregard, his smile couldn't be more genuine. When he swung his long hair to one side so he could expose the alabaster skin of his neck to her scrutiny, her breath hitched.

"V-Vincent..."

He just kept on smiling. "That was all I wanted, Evangeline. Nothing more, nothing less."

Her smirk suddenly turned predatory, and Vincent found himself on his back again. "You really know how to push my buttons, don't you? You want me, you got me. Now, _you're mine._"

They proved that to each other many, many times, until they collapsed in exhaustion.

...

The night before, a binge of blood and the resulting recovery coma he had fallen into had given him nothing but pain-filled hallucinations of his own design, which, while terrible, were easily ignored after the fact.

That night, Vincent relived in slow motion what Tsukune had forced on him.

Their true state as memories had never been clearer as he saw in first person what caused each injury making his nerves scream. Worse yet, he _felt_ the other man's emotions as they occurred, and once again he was brought short in wonder at what he experienced. It was like the Aono child had absolutely no concept of selfishness.

This was all eliminated in one fell swoop by the recurrence of another memory, in even more detail than before. He would have screamed his vocal chords bloody had he the ability.

The pain was unimaginable, and he had seen masters of the item at work.

BREAKING!

_Don't care._

Why didn't he care? He cared very much! It felt like his _cells_ were being torn apart!

DYING!

_Don't care._

Of course he did! It was the best description yet!

_One more…just one more…_

One more what? Why would anyone wish for more of this?

PAIN!

Stop! No more!

...Wait...there was no more pain. No more pain...

DEATH.

_Kill._

What?

_Kill._

But that's...

_KILL KILL KILL KILL KILL KILL KILL KILL KILL KILL KILL KILL KILL KILL KILL KILL!_

The rage, oh the rage was unstoppable, unbeatable, it was his entire existence.

Just like that both it, and the memory, were gone, soon to be replaced by another. This one was even more lucid, and just like the last one, he fervently wished it wasn't.

It started out innocently enough. Standing alone in the midst of a storm's fury at the edge of a cliff, allowing himself to bathe in the God-given wrath of Nature itself. His heart was aching for some reason or another, but his intention was finally set. He knew what he had to do.

Confess to himself what he was.

Stop lying about what he had become.

Oh he remembered the pain, he knew all too well the rage, but that was only one part of it.

He was what he needed to be hers already, he just needed to take that last step.

...Wait, what?

His hand was reaching over to his other arm now, and a part of Vincent was horrified. Something would happen if it reached its destination, something he couldn't explain. It wouldn't be good, it couldn't be good!

Something snapped, and abruptly his mind was as calm as a lake of glass.

Then wind was rushing past him, and the cliff face was moving farther and farther away.

Bone hit rock, senses became muted in the crashing melody surrounding him, and this time the pain was chillingly familiar.

It could numb anything ever felt before in its intensity; it sapped his strength like a merciless leech; it felt like he was being burned alive.

He knew this pain.

The thought made him cold, and it was that that allowed him to regain his sense of self in an experience not his own.

He knew this pain. He _KNEW_ this _PAIN!_

But then he was thirsty.

He was so...

He was so...

..._thirsty_...

...

Vincent Valentine shot upright in his bed with a scream that could have echoed to the very bowels of hell.

He sat there panting, sweat positively _dripping_ from his body as Evangeline worriedly smoothed back his wet hair. She didn't say anything, but her question was so loud it could have been written in the air. He couldn't even be bothered to notice her; his mind was running a mile a minute.

It wasn't possible. He had _seen_ him! He had fought him himself! It just wasn't possible!

But his own thoughts betrayed him to the truth. He had _seen_ him react to Alexander's challenge, he had _fought_ him with an intensity he should have known, and he had healed like few others could ever imagine.

Every sign had been there, he just hadn't wanted to see.

The last and only thing he said before he passed out was:

"Dear God what have I done?"

...

**Author's Notes:** And it's done, the latest chapter is finally done! That took WAY too damn long! I would have had this up yesterday but my internet was screwy for some reason. I'll admit, reading chapter 34 killed any writing I might have done for a good week, and I'll be honest when I say I haven't read chapter 35 yet, and probably won't until the whole thing is done now. I've had at least one reviewer complain about my ragging on the manga itself, and at least one quit reading because of it—so I'm sorry about that—but I'm entitled to my opinion, and I'll defend it this once with what I said to EmeraldDeath in a PM conversation.

I reread most of the manga to make sure I was justified, and sure enough, I was. Chapter three of the manga can be explained away because of the one line (ONE LINE!) that Moka uses saying her memory's a bit fuzzy (come on!), but chapter eight-at least I believe it was chapter eight-was narrated by KOKOA! Kokoa's flashback to her family life was NOTHING like what's been shown in the latest manga chapters, and there is NO excuse for her. Every fanwriter out there thought they had an image of the sisters' home life FOR A REASON, and then these chapters come out and suddenly Moka's not powerful at all (which she was shown as in chapter eight, standing around littered corpses WITHOUT her seal), her vampiric pupils didn't even show up until she was right in front of Alucard, and then barely, only showing more when Akasha was sliced in two (which again, goes against what was shown all the previous flashbacks before, in which Moka's eyes were always the vampire red), and her family seems NICE! I mean, I'm a family person, I can't stand what some people are depicted doing in some of the mangas out there, but there HAS to be CONTINUITY! R+V threw all of that out the window, and seems bound and determined to keep effing things over until its unrecognizable. Even Moka's AGE seems to have decreased lately, and I'm not talking about the flashbacks. Look at the first chapters of the second season, and Moka's exactly like she's been shown, beautiful, deadly, very much a _woman_. It's like mangakas forget that by sixteen, most women are already fully grown, and only have to grow into the rest of themselves, which Moka had clearly been doing earlier on. Lately even her figure seems to have de-aged, and I'm just getting sick of it.

I kept all the capitalization because this really is how I feel about how the manga's been going. The reason I didn't want to go back and change pieces of my story is because I _wrote it_, so I have to stick to what I've decided. I can make changes later on, even make some explanations, as long as they're reasonable, but I can't just toss everything I did out the window because—oooh, I have a new idea, let's do that instead!

I know that came right out of left field, and I'm sorry for the rant, but that's the last time I'll defend my views. **I'm not saying my writing is better than the original—if that was the case I'd be making money on it like the mangakas are, LOL**—but I'm telling you all what I hold myself to and why the manga makes a mockery of most plotted-out books. Just look at Bleach and Naruto. Now there's a couple of mangas that couldn't care less about continuity, LOL. I was absolutely disgusted when the chapter came out that showed Kyuubi being sealed in Naruto, because hundreds of ninjas were _watching_, they bloody well WATCHED a mother _and_ father give their lives for their child, and still they allowed him to go through twelve _years_ of psychological abuse and physical neglect. That's inexcusable to humanity as a whole, and with each new chapter continues getting more ridiculous. After seeing those memories, or being told of them anyway if he didn't (which would be strange because it was in his own mind) he shouldn't have even thought of helping Konoha anymore. I'm a nice person, and I know people that could be considered saints of patience, yet if a situation similar to what happened in Naruto really happened in real life, there would be a public outcry the likes of which has never been seen before!

Okay, I'm sorry. Rant over. Ugh. It just gets me sometimes.

Anyways, THANK YOU FOR THE REVIEWS! I'm sorry I don't reply to all of them personally, but sometimes I forget you can do that. I'm used to AFF where I have to wait till the net chapter to post my responses, so I guess I've gotten in the habit. YOU GUYS ARE AMAZING! Please continue to tell me what you think!

I hope you continue to enjoy my work, and we've still got more than a few chapters to go!


	21. Mentorship: Pt I

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Rosario+Vampire, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story. Simple enough, ne? Just don't copy from this story and we're all good!

…

**Author's Notes:** I decided to put them up here this time just to say I'm sorry. As an avid reader as well as a writer, I understand the impatience for an update. It's been nearly two months since my last one and this chapter still wasn't to where I wanted it after…well, I've got quite a few pages of the next one written out already, I'll tell you that much. I decided to post what amounted to one of my usual chapters without ending on as much of a cliffy as I seem to have been doing lately (LOL, lately, there's a laugh, eh?). Anyways, I'm sorry to say that this chapter is heavily imbalanced when it comes to the character screentime, but that's because I had planned for so much more to happen during it. To do that, the wait would have only increased. Don't worry, the neglected characters get plenty of time in the next chapter, so I guess I'm just asking for some understanding on that part. If I waited until the chapter was exactly where I wanted it, it would probably end up being over forty pages long, which is why I decided to post this. I'm kind of upset at myself for taking this long to decide when I was really trying for Christmas at the latest, but I'm a perfectionist; I just decided to listen to my realist side this time.

Merry belated Christmas everyone!

.

**Mentorship - Pt. I**

.

Yesterday had been a day well spent in the mind of Ruby Toujou. True, Tsukune and Moka were absent for most of it making up for lost time, but in the end that had turned out to be a good thing, as the surprise they got when they finally showed up made the wait well worth it. It wasn't even much of a wait, seeing as every hour had been spent doing something during it. She, out of all of them, had been busier than the rest because of her well-honed ability with a sewing machine, and some customization had been necessary with a few of the items Rei had chosen from Yukari's wardrobe. None of which she would miss, naturally. As a dragon, Rei could hardly fathom parting with _any_ item from what might be considered a hoard; that she was being allowed to take freely almost made her cry again. As such, she made sure that what she chose was easily replaceable or was one of many. As they had all assured her however, family took care of each other, it was as simple as that. Ruby had greatly enjoyed the challenge of making the old things into something new for the young dragon too, even if they would only last for a short period before she grew out of them. It would keep her skill sharp nonetheless.

It made her feel better about herself too. She had no illusions about her chances in front of a Vampire, especially the vampires that Tsukune had fought only two short days ago. Still, she and Yukari had barely finished their _first_ project in time to be of any use, and that had hurt their self-esteem more than anything. It didn't matter that the bracelets were the first of their kind and would likely never be recreated without their creators' notes, it didn't even matter that the notes themselves could be used as a master's thesis for either witch if they wanted to; what mattered was they hadn't been of any use whatsoever. Ruby allowed herself a sinister smile when she thought of that. They might not have been of any use _that_ time, but every second longer they stayed on their wrists, they became better prepared for _next_ time. She fully expected to be a front-line combatant, or at the very least a most useful support, when something happened again.

While their progress on their other prospective experiments was practically nonexistent, she now considered that a good thing. The hardest one currently had two successful archetypes that worked perfectly, but in all seriousness that was all she could consider them since she was now sure they could make them _better_. Eventually. Since Rei's gifts had been given, whole new worlds of possibilities had been opened up and the witches' ideas had moved into entirely different dimensions. In one case, literally.

That was for later, for now she had a very simple yet equally important idea she wanted to get completed, the earlier the better. Hence the reason why the headmaster's aide was once again in Mononoke Arcade, this time without anyone else.

She was sure Tsukune would like the idea. She sure did.

...

The man in question was still trying to reconcile the image walking beside him with what he had known ever since she came into his life. From the second he had been made aware that his newfound Familiar was very much of the female persuasion, Tsukune had resigned himself to certain things, and that list had become much longer when it was revealed she could look every bit as human as he once was. To him it had never mattered what she wore, she exuded the same confidence regardless of whatever was used as clothing, though arguably buying her anything hadn't been worth it before they went to Paradise, when she spent more time in her natural form than she did in her human disguise. Give that confidence a more fitting packaging however…

When he saw her for the first time the evening before, he hadn't known what to say. It was most definitely Rei, her silver eyes and browned skin indicated that clearly, but he was suddenly struck with a consuming sense of shame when he thought of what she had been forced to wear for the past month. Even before then she had been content with nothing but a improvised robe in the form of an oversized shirt, but when she was actually given something to wear that fit and suited her…it was shown just how much of a woman she was growing into.

It was so simple too. One of Yukari's trademark capes had been sewn into what was effectively a long skirt, draped completely over one bronze leg and thus drawing attention to the side not nearly as covered, where instead of trying to force the article ill-fitted for such a design to work as would be considered proper, one edge had merely been attached to the hem, and left almost a whole side open to inspection. This was needed was she to maintain the mobility she was used to in her fighting, and also for ease of removal should the situation demand it, but he was eternally thankful for the form-fitting black shorts that side exposed. At least she had _some_ modesty…or more likely had been forced to add them. Otherwise she had simply appropriated a standard-issue white blouse, cut off the sleeves, and kept enough buttons unfastened to keep her as comfortable as she had become accustomed to while wearing clothes, or perhaps not wearing, as the case may be. Between the shades of brown and whites that made up her image, the bright spot of color was a golden scarf folded loosely around her neck and into the gap of her shirt's collar. Her lack of shoes was clear but then again so was the reason for their absence: both her continuous growth and her obvious disdain of the things.

All of that was ornamentation compared the change most glaring to him. The choppy whitecaps of ashen locks that had long flowed back from her head had been cut, and cut drastically. There seemed to be no rhyme or reason to the uneven mop that now hung from her head, though in that apparent confusion laid carefully planned cuts that turned what might have been a mess into a fashionable style distinctly her own. This all led down to a ponytail that retained the full span of what it had gained over her growth spurt, and hung loosely to the back of her thighs. It was as unique as everything else about her, untamed yet refined. He was more than a bit upset he hadn't been able to do anything like it for her before then, and just to show how adept she had become at reading his facial expressions over their time alone, she called him on it.

"Tsukki, does my change in appearance bother you?"

The words jerked him out of his introspection, where he was then able to see the quiet insecurity held in the eyes looking at him. Again, he felt bad for even making her _think_ such a thing. "N-No, Rei, nothing like that at all!"

"Then why do you look at me so? Is my presence disagreeable?"

That was something he wouldn't allow at _all_, so with both hands firmly on her shoulders he forced her to a stop. "Don't you ever,_ ever_, think that. Understand?"

She could only nod as she felt her cheeks warm at the protectiveness in his tone. "Y-Yes. My apologies, Tsukki."

The young vampire sighed as he ran a hand through his hair. It was just supposed to be a short stop to the Arcade to pick up what he wanted; she had come along because she liked the idea he had for around their cave. He wasn't going to keep her out of it when it involved her so heavily. For the others it was to be a surprise, one they deserved after the one they had given him yesterday. "Listen Rei, it's just…I mean look at you! You spend a _day_ with the girls and you look…l-l-look…" He blushed when she started smirking at his stuttering, and scowled jokingly. "Fine, you look good, alright! A day and they manage to throw together something that looks so _right_ on you, and I had more than a month and I gave you boxers and a damn t-shirt! I know you would have grown out of it when you jumped the age gap, and I know you'll grow out of this too, but still!"

By the time he was done, her expression held nothing but warmth. "You silly, silly man; are you _jealous?_"

Tsukune sputtered indignantly until he actually thought about what he had said. With a _huff_ he crossed his arms over his chest and did his best not to sulk. "Okay, I guess I do sound pretty jealous." A pale eyebrow quirked skywards. "_Okay_, I guess I _am_ pretty jealous. I'm happy for you, and you look wonderful, I just feel like I should have done more for you."

She laughed. "More than making sure I was warm and fed when I lacked the skill to do so myself? More than making sure I had a place to stay and hunt when I became too big for you to care for? More than spending an entire month with me and _only_ me, even when that meant your treasures were left unguarded? Would you care to explain just how you could have done anything more? As was explained to me so plainly, you are a male, these things are expected to be beyond your range of expertise."

He glowered sullenly, which only made her laugh again as she grabbed his hand.

"Worry not, my friend. Let us be off; what you hope to accomplish needs time, so we must not tarry long."

"How can she make it seem like it's _my_ fault we're not going as quickly as we could when it was…?"

His mutters to the empty air went ignored if anyone heard them.

...

It had been a fun endeavor despite whatever musings might have gone on during which. With the spells he had learned—or created—what he had set out to do had been easily done, or more accurately, started. He had spent as long as he could there before his pre-appointed meeting time with the headmaster, so he wasn't sure of how much progress there would be. Rei's effect on environments was well-known, yet not, at the same time. The mechanics were, and he guessed always would be, impossible to figure out, but that was fine with him. All he needed was for it to work. He had tried to add to that result, if he even could, but with that it was hard to tell if there would be anything that came from it. Clearly what he thought didn't have any consequence on trying, since his beloved Familiar had been most expressive with her excitement when he voiced his idea.

So they simply sat, gazing out at what they had made. They had kept a thin grove of trees to encircle the entrance to their home in Paradise, but with magic and dragonfire they had made a great clearing right after. Even if they didn't have a reason, the incineration of the mass undergrowth and vegetation would allow for newer life to gain purchase, not to mention the nutrients added to the fertile soil as the dragon herself tilled the land with her massive talons. While Rei had felt remorse for the devastation she had caused by the portal, this time the destruction of the old was to herald new birth, and that was something that had her tie to nature singing. It was with that tie that she knew what they were adding would have no adverse effect on the alien environment of the different dimension, otherwise she would have never permitted it. By the time they were ready to begin their plan, no farmer could have asked for better dirt.

Both dragon and vampire just sunned themselves, lying satisfied at the edge of their clearing after it was all said and done. Tsukune was almost sorry Yukari and Ruby were missing what was going on, for in the resonating magic the choir of Nature had grown to a fever pitch. Blood shared between partners sang an unmistakable duet amongst the rest, courting the others to their cause, and as the young man laid atop his friend's enormous back, he felt like he could reach out and touch the formless musicians dancing behind his closed eyes.

...

Elsewhere, a certain emerald-eyed beauty and her ethereal counterpart looked around sharply. If they didn't know any better, both would swear some part of them felt like it was…singing.

...

Tsukune was on an incomparable high as he walked to the headmaster's office. That had been exactly what he needed before going to face whatever Fate planned to screw him over the table with next. Before he even knocked on the elaborate doors, the Dark Lord's unassumingly powerful voice called him in, which didn't even gain a cringe under Tsukune's happy mood.

That, and his whole body, froze when he saw someone already standing beside the Exorcist. Pale blond hair, vulpine features, and those two, oh so unforgettable spots above the nose. Unexpectedly his mind was assaulted with the smell of burnt flesh, of screams of pain and pleas for mercy. His vision tinged red at the sudden bloodlust than enveloped him, and if he could have ever forgiven himself he might have given in. As it was, the _only_ thing that kept him from turning right back around and walking out of that room was the fact that Kuyou would never be caught dead in a skirt, and the figure by the priest was very much a _girl_.

Tense as steel, the vampire strode forward, his face now a mask of barely-collected confusion. "I'm sorry headmaster, I didn't realize you had an earlier appointment." His eyes shifted to the obvious relation to Kuyou, where in better light he could see she looked hardly over fifteen. A First Year. Her demeanor reminded him acutely of her older lookalike, and that did nothing to improve his opinion of her.

Of course, the older man just chuckled good-naturedly. **"Ah, and the final guest arrives, right on time. No, Tsukune-kun, this fine young lady is here for the same reason you are."**

Both looked understandably shocked at that, but the girl clearly more than him. "Y-You mean the person…"

The board chairman nodded. **"One of them, yes. Now, as you are no doubt aware, the council and I have chosen to reinstitute the Public Safety Commission. Several things went wrong last time, the worst of which was it regrettably went unchecked due to flagrant fear-mongering. The school's rules are there for a reason, and while some can be handled by teachers, it's also for the best that fellow students hold themselves accountable. For one reason in particular the Student Police will be reformed at the beginning of this term, but with it there are going to be some changes. Most notably, the reason you both were called here at the same time. Go ahead, introduce yourselves."**

"Tsukune Aono," the former human said briskly with a rigid bow.

"Like anyone at this school doesn't know who you are," she replied sarcastically, but in a show of a markedly different characteristic than Kuyou, she smiled as well. Not a large smile, but a smile nonetheless. "Noriko Myobu; please take care of me, Senpai." This was, naturally, completed with a small curtsy. Tsukune found himself genuinely smiling back, although cautiously.

Getting back to the topic, he turned to the grinning seal master. "So what does this have to do with the Student Police?"

**"For the rest of the year, the board and I have agreed to install a…mentorship program, if you will, into the Safety Commission. Just to be clear, we hope it to be a more focused and effective version of the senpai-kohai dichotomy. Third Year mentors, with Second and First Year probationary members. Third Years with recommendations from the staff will be put into the force, conduct-permitting. Of course, I will be the one to ultimately approve all these selections. The younger students then have a chance to learn under their senpai on a near individual basis; again, conduct-permitting. Some may even choose to take more than one under their wing; the choice is yours. Another bonus is that the Commission will be twice as large as before for a time, yet still only wield the power of half. Any kind of disciplinary action the younger members choose to mete out will have to be approved by a mentor, and anything that both agree merits something above, and including, a one-day in-school suspension will have to be approved by myself or a staff member I've appointed in my absence."**

"So basically you've neutered the Student Police as an autonomous entity, but agree to the concept of students keeping other students in line," the blond stated primly.

"When the alternative is having powerful egomaniacs run rampant through the school doing whatever they damn well please, from locking students up, destroying clubs, and hospitalizing whoever speak against them, I'd say that's exactly what it needs," the brown-eyed teen countered frigidly, and the underclassman stepped back unwittingly at the audible venom in his voice.

"I take it you had the pleasure of meeting my cousin during his time here?"

That confirmed what he had thought from the beginning, and the memories she was bringing back were things he would rather leave behind. "…You could say he was a very important part in making me who I am today."

The headmaster coughed to hide his short chuckle. **"Kuyou-kun was a black mark on the program I hope you will be able to redeem, Noriko-chan. Make no mistake, he was an excellent student and a powerful Youkai, but his flaws impacted the whole academy badly. There **_**will**_** be times when you will need to end situations forcefully, but not all, and the use of force will be carefully monitored this time. I'm not condemning your group to be ineffectual punching-bags for the masses, every one of you has been chosen for your behavior during first term **_**and**_** your power level. Both were required to be selected. We won't have you be intimidated, but we won't have you intimidating either. Again, common sense must be used to determine the situation. If intimidation solves a potentially dangerous problem peacefully, so be it; if you intimidate for the sake of intimidating or to coerce, you can count on there being penalties."**

Tsukune grinned. "Sounds good…and long overdue. Why now?"

**"A safety precaution, as it was originally meant to be. We want this year's school festival to be safe."**

The bombshell's effect wasn't lessened at all, despite its casual admittance.

The vampire eyed his—surely insane—headmaster warily. "I'm pretty sure we don't have any rare sentient artifacts on the loose this year…" In the background, Lilith stuck her tongue out at him. "…but in case you forgot about what happened just this week..."

**"Did I forget to mention the second most important function of the Student Police is to help keep the students they represent safe? You would be well within your rights to physically engage any threat to the student body, and if you were injured in the process they could and **_**would**_** be prosecuted. You are, literally, the police force of this school, and the first line of defense after the teachers."** He could practically see the wheels turning in the ex-human's head, and suppressed a smile.

"So…if, say just hypothetically, 'people' came to remove a student from the grounds illegally _and_ against their will, I could put them in their place without worrying about consequences on my end? I'd get _help_ even?"

When the Exorcist nodded, Tsukune's grin gained a decidedly malevolent taint.

"Where do I sign?"

...

"So I'm going to go out on a limb here and guess you're a Youko," the young man stated offhandedly as he and his newly assigned charge walked aimlessly through the forest surrounding the academy. Sure she might not have been outright placed with him, but the Exorcist could be subtle when he wanted to. More often than not that just meant there was a bigger shock down the road.

The poor girl startled terribly, her unruffled appearance now thoroughly replaced with surprise. "How do you know that?" she cried, but her Third Year minder simply glanced sidelong at her.

"You told me yourself Kuyou's your cousin. If it was left up to me I would have guessed sister instead, so I'd say it's a pretty good bet you're a Youko like him."

Noriko stared at him, and surprise no longer did her expression justice. Whether this was from what he knew or that he hadn't added a suffix to her cousin's name was indecipherable. "But how do you—" She didn't trail off, her mouth actually snapped shut with an audible _click_ as her mind made the links. "You saw him." It wasn't a question.

Tsukune's resulting laugh was bitter and mirthless, so unlike the rumors she had heard and what she had seen from afar. She was nothing if not observant, and one of the school's recurring pieces of gossip was what the Newspaper Club routinely got up to. Naturally this lead to some curiosity from the aristocratic First Year, though she did nothing other than study their group whenever they were around where she already was. She may not have sought them out, but it was clear to see with even limited surveillance that the only man among them was everything the rumors said and more. A laugh like that then was enough to get the teenage girl a bit worried, despite her upbringing. It sounded _wrong_ coming from him, but when she looked in his eyes she could see it was founded. Well founded.

With a resigned sigh he leaned back against the nearest tree, sliding to the ground with a thousand-yard stare that gazed out over the odd ocean near the bus stop. He motioned to the tree next to his and she got the hint clearly enough to join him, though she sat as impeccably as she dressed, unlike his careless disregard. His time immersed in nature had taught him one of the greatest joys was relaxing in its care, so he didn't bother holding himself at attention when little else surrounded him but it. He couldn't blame her for how she acted; if everyone could see what he had been taught to see, they would never look down on witches ever again. He hoped he would be around to see that day.

A good shake of his head cleared his mind, and just to make sure he spared another look to his side, where Noriko was indeed still sitting, raptly focused on him. It was almost cute. Fifteen seemed like decades ago to him now and he was only eighteen bloody years old. "I'll be honest, I don't know what a mentor's supposed to do other than lead by example, and let's face it, as much as I might try not to, I've broken a lot of rules since I came here. Not all by choice, mind you," he added with a chuckle at her scandalized look, "but things keep happening beyond my control that tend to force the issue. Take how I know about Kuyou, for example. I know he's a Youko because he tried to kill me and all my friends in the Newspaper Club in my first year."

Composed as she was, the blond was nearly stuttering trying to decipher any hidden meaning behind that. "B-But _why?_" If she wanted to say anything else, it was lost in her voiceless mouth. Judging from her face however, the other question she was dying to ask had to be, _'and how did you survive?'_

Then she remembered who she was talking to.

"It doesn't matter now." He fought the rueful smile that wanted to form on his lips. _Ain't that the truth?_ "It happened, we beat him, end of story. He was so far gone in his version of 'justice' he could do no wrong. He _was_ law, or at least that's what he deluded himself into thinking. I know we have our hands full in a school full of monsters, but he simply added to the problem by locking people up at the smallest infraction. Yes, we're monsters; yes, some of us have different urges than humans, so some things might lead to the occasional mistake, and there—now I don't know how much respect you have for him, so I'm sorry but I'm just going to come right out and say it—Kuyou was a moron."

Her eyes hardened, not that he had expected anything less, and he shrugged. "Force and fear get you nowhere. The resentment was building up, it was common sense that as soon as someone strong enough came around something was going to happen…especially if he was his regular charming self around them." Grudgingly, a snort of laughter came from the girl. "See? You do have some idea about what I mean. He wasn't fair. It's idealistic to always be fair in every situation, but hey, that's what ideals are for, right? He didn't even try. He was an overpowered, conceited little kid with delusions of grandeur, and the worst thing was because he was that powerful he was put in a position of authority. He thought he held life and death in his hands, and because he had the power to dish it out, he thought it was his _right_. Heck, he may _still_ think that for all I know. What I _do_ know is he never tried anything again after he was shown he wasn't the biggest fish in the food chain. It may sound hypocritical, but there's a difference between what he did and what we were forced to do."

She was quiet for a long time after that, but he was content to let her think through it. God only knew how many times he had been sent to the roof of the school just to try and make sense of the things that had gone on in his life that particular week, or day, or hour. With a family like his, _hectic_ tended to be their _normal_. Not that they minded. They were there to help each other through things. He wasn't sure if she had any friends close enough for that, so he would sit and wait, enjoying the silence and crashing waves below.

"Why did you tell me this?" she asked, nearly inaudible.

He had asked himself that same question. "Because the second I saw you I flashbacked to Kuyou. There are still people here that remember him and what he did; they're in my year, but they're here. You've got the rest of this year to make sure that when you're mostly on your own next year, everyone can form their own opinion of _you_, not Kuyou's cousin. When we all graduate you'll be given a pretty much clean slate, but I'd guess another reason for assigning Third Years to the new group is that we all know what the old one acted like, and to protect you from any that still have something against it." Which, now that he thought about it, was probably the reason they had been told to meet at the same time. "I don't want you to make the same mistakes Kuyou did, and if that needs me to tell you straight up that your cousin was a prick of the highest order, well, I'll do it. You may not like me for it, but I'm sure out of everyone in the new Commission, you'll have the hardest time being accepted by the upperclassmen. I'm simply telling you why."

She laughed hollowly. "You know, when I was approached for this I was ecstatic. My aunt and uncle were so proud of Kuyou-san when he became head of the Student Police. Walking around school with respect as a firstie like him became my dream; when I heard it had been dismantled I was devastated. To be honest, I even contemplated joining the Newspaper Club, because aside from what I wanted, you guys seemed to have a lot of the school's respect already. It wouldn't surprise me if the rest of your club was asked to be mentors too, if they haven't been before now."

Tsukune stiffened when he realized the truth in what she said. That seemed _exactly_ like something the Exorcist would do. He smacked the back of his head into the tree and laughed at the absurdity of the thought. The one group more involved in every kind of trouble at Youkai Academy also had the biggest chance of guiding those chosen to stop it. It made a twisted kind of sense.

"Are you okay?"

He waved her off as he wiped his eyes. "I'm...I'm fine," he chuckled. "I can actually see that happening, that's all."

"I wouldn't have said it if I didn't think it was possible," she replied crossly.

"And I wouldn't have laughed if I didn't believe you." Slackening back to the tree, he tried to figure out what to do. They had been encouraged to get to know each other before they were plunged into the deep end when school resumed, and he knew it was important. At least they were getting somewhere, but that was negligible. "It might still be a good thing, you know; joining the Newspaper Club, that is. It'd be nice to get some new blood into the club for a little while, and this whole thing would make an interesting article, wouldn't it?"

"But wouldn't that be a conflict of interest? Law and media and all that? What if everyone worries about censorship?" The only indication of his offense was the tightening of his jaw, but that alone was enough to make her shudder when his gaze locked on hers.

"Kuyou tried, and _succeeded,_ for far too long. Gin-senpai lost his whole club to that idiot simply because they tried to speak out, and he almost lost us too. We stopped him then, I'll make it perfectly clear I'd quit the Student Police before I allowed anything to influence the Newspaper Club; actually, make that _any_ club. I can guarantee if any of my friends _are_ chosen for this experiment, they'll say the same thing."

Another bout of silence sprouted while she processed that, more than a little shocked that he would turn down what she had dreamed of so easily. That just drove home what she was really getting into, and she smiled sadly. "I had wondered why I got weird looks from some of the seniors. Nothing that ever came to blows, not yet, but will that change when I show up in uniform?"

"It might," Tsukune answered bluntly, and her head whipped up so fast he was sure he heard her neck crack. He offered a reassuring smile before continuing, "When I first saw you in the headmaster's office, I was two steps away from...yeah, well…let's just say it would have hurt. It took me a couple of seconds to notice you weren't Kuyou. Before now I didn't even notice you, but this'll put you front and center, so you're gonna have to give the rest of the seniors those few seconds too."

She bristled like a disgruntled cat, sneering derisively down on him with the full force of her admittedly large Youki behind it. "So you're saying I should just lie back and take it like a good girl? I'm not my cousin, and I'll prove that to anyone who thinks otherwise!"

Her supernatural power was certainly above what most of the students had, especially freshmen, but compared to what he had faced it felt like a child's temper tantrum. As he rose he shook his head incredulously, only smirking when her teeth barred and she pushed out more at him. "Which'll prove you're not like Kuyou? Taking their criticism gracefully, or lashing out?"

The struggle to hold on to her anger was visible in the twitches of her facial muscles, yet soon enough she deflated like a spent balloon. No words were necessary.

"Don't worry," he soothed sympathetically. "If anyone does try anything, you won't need to defend yourself. We take care of our friends."

Warring between confusion and relief, she struck quiet the picture, most of all when he compared it to Kuyou. If there was ever a chance for the school to attain true justice, not the kind her relative had tried to impose, with the right guidance he felt her year could find it, if she was anything to go by. This was adolescent uncertainty at its finest, before things had a chance to solidify...or skew. Had Kuyou ever been like this? Had he ever questioned his course? What made him do what he did, or had he always been like that? With Noriko, he saw the chance for a disgraced organization to be respected again. That is, if they did things right of course.

For now, she was only a perplexed young teen, whose only question was, "Who's 'we'?"

His smile was soft and welcoming, as if he hadn't even felt the malicious intent in the Youki that had bore down on him.

"I think it's time you were formally introduced to the Newspaper Club."

He lead the way.

She felt compelled to follow.

.

V^^^V

.

Evangeline Valentine was stalking through the illustrious manor where she lived with her husband, her _blood-mate,_ remembering the night before. Once, lifetimes ago it seemed, finding someone who could accept her wholly had been something she had cried herself to sleep at night thinking about. She had come a long way from that misguided little girl, fed lies and mistruths, far too trusting for her own good. She had finally found him, she had known it from the second she saw how he responded to her. He wasn't like the others; even if she hadn't been as adept at reading people by that time as she was, even if she didn't have an unfair advantage in that department already, she had known.

Oh she had longed to tell him everything, but the sad truth was mates could leave each other. She couldn't afford that, not with her secrets. After so many years together she knew she would say yes if he asked for more, to finally tell those last omissions keeping them from truly becoming one, but she had to be patient. That wasn't to say that she didn't feel awful for keeping them from him for so long, and was in fact hoping to cement their relationship eternally before she bared her most shameful past to him, so, against her better instincts and all her fear, she had told him.

Drunk on his love and buzzed with pleasure, it had torn her heart to stay his mouth just as he neared her neck. There was nothing else she could do though, it had to be done. Just like his confession earlier in the night, hers was just as important. She would never be able to live with herself if she tied him to a bond he didn't want, regardless of what he might have said beforehand. He had been stunned, as expected; he had never thought of just _why_ she could be harder to ruffle than his mother, and the longer her admission hung in the air, the more her fear grew. Tears grew with it, streaked her alabaster skin and streamed down as she moved to dart from the bed and away from his life. It would hurt, it would hurt more than anything ever had before, but she would do it. Anything to preserve her happy memories of their years together.

An iron grip had secured itself around her arm before she could even leave the comfort of the covers, where she was then thrown bodily to her back and fangs were in her throat. _His_ fangs, _Vincent's_ fangs. She just cried harder, now tears of joy as she clasped him to her as hard as she could. The rest of the night was a blur of joined flesh and shared blood, and when they finally allowed themselves to rest they were closer than they had ever been.

Then he woke up screaming, sweat-slicked and pale. She had never been more terrified, thinking he had regretted his decision, and his words certainly didn't make her feel any better. When he fainted he had slumped into her instinctively—a great relief for the agitated vampiress—in desperate need of comfort, of _her_. Normally so contained and subtle, his aura had been fluxing around her with every breath he took, but more concerning was how his unconscious body was shaking spasmodically as she held him. It was like he had been dipped in water and held there; as a matter of fact, it was exactly like how he had returned home earlier, only fresher.

After hours of him showing no signs of waking, his eyes had finally opened, haunted by visions she could only imagine. His weak smile had probably been meant to be heartening but it wasn't, his whispered "I love you" did a bit more, and after he had assured her he would be alright on his own he had actually _left the room_, citing his need to think alone for a little while.

She had given him that—she knew they would talk about it later—but now the day was well underway and, quite simply, she needed to be with him. Despite what they had done, her soul felt exposed in a way she had never felt. Having carried her past with her all her life, learned the best way to survive was keeping her cards close to her chest, said past the most important of which, she had never told anyone. _Anyone._ Those that did find out were only the opponents she had needed everything for, and needless to say they didn't survive the encounter. It had been a long, _long_ time since she needed everything she had to offer too, though nowadays she tended to avoid the ones where she would. They were few in number, true, but deadly all the same.

The words sounded awkward coming from her throat, so long confined within the labyrinth of her heart. She, the dreaded Dark Evangel, had stuttered, squeaked, and otherwise come completely undone as she told her lover and chosen mate her best-kept secret. The lightness she experienced when he finally knew, and _accepted_ her, was immensely freeing, but with it came a disconcerting feeling of...uncertainty. She didn't like it, and if there was anything she was vocal about, it was things she didn't like.

So there she was, stalking through her home, trying to find her wayward blood-mate. Well, if she was _really_ looking she could find him pretty quickly, but the mindless search was keeping her mind occupied and let her think things over. Normally she would do that in the library, but right then she just needed to be moving.

When she started paying attention to her surroundings again she noticed she was in the training wing, which earned a well-practiced eye-roll. It figured if her feet had been told not to go to their first hardwired destination, they would choose the second as their alternative. The smell of blood and sweat was always an undertone to the air here, never completely eliminated regardless of the effort the servants put into cleaning it, and she knew instinctively he was close. Advancing carefully at the sound of furious swordplay, she had good reason to be stunned when she saw Vincent's younger brother sparring with his _mother_.

It had been a long time since she had seen Ivy out to play, so to speak. Regal in posture, how she held herself barely looked like it could be considered a stance, yet the evidence was irrefutable. Blunt steel sword gripped loosely by her side, she kept her body at an angle that gave the smallest possible target to her opponent, however the weapon wasn't in front of her like most would think, instead held behind, away from her foe. While this would usually indicate a favor to evasion over brute force, it couldn't be forgotten that she was a _vampire_, equally suited to both.

Even though Ivy was tall for a woman, Alexander was taller, but as she watched Eva couldn't help but feel that Ivy was still the taller of the two. Their exchange was mesmerizing; there was no argument against Alex's lifelong training, but when that was compared to one whose life encompassed his a good dozen times over it was almost pitiful. There wasn't so much as a mark on her, nor was her breathing even remotely ragged. She weaved through his every stroke with expert grace, all the while offering a continuous commentary on what he could improve on and what he was doing wrong before she exploded into action, demonstrating each point with painful precision.

More surprising to her was Alexander's reaction to this. He had always been hotheaded and easy to goad into his bloodlust, here he was visibly restraining himself from reacting in haste, and dutifully nodded to his mother's criticisms. It was such a profound change from what she was used to she almost didn't notice that Vincent's youki was in the room as well. Looking up, she smirked when she saw an arm dangling over the side of one of the hefty wood trusses that supported the roof of the large dojo. A hop had her balancing mere feet away from him, and with the ease of a cat she slinked down to lay in his open arms.

"Hey handsome," she whispered, relishing in the renewed sense of surety as his hold tightened around her.

"Hey yourself, beautiful," he replied quietly. He was looking much healthier than he had that morning, but he sounded _lost_.

With his chin resting comfortably on her head, she had to lean up to cup his face so he would look at her, only concern in the soft touch. "Come on baby, are you going to tell me what's wrong? I can't help if you don't."

He sighed deeply as they relaxed back into the timber. "You remember what I said young Moka's blood-mate did to me?" She hummed her assent. "I know I said they were memories, but last night they actually felt like them. I felt pain the first time, random..._flashes_...but last night...I _was_ him. I felt his fear, his conviction, his sorrow and weakness, I _felt_ it. I…_was_ it."

Evangeline mimicked his sigh, silently glad it wasn't what the dark side of her wanted to think. Still, she had the answer to his unspoken question. "Your mind was overwhelmed with thirst and the need for rest when you came home. You still had nightmares, but it wasn't that bad because your subconscious was still focused on healing you. Yesterday your body had mostly recuperated, so your mind finally had time to address _it's_ wounds. The sleeping mind is much more vulnerable than when its awake."

His mild grunt told her he had thought as much, and they returned to listening to the din of fighting below them until something occurred to her.

"What about the boya?" She felt him go rigid beneath her, and just as suddenly the noise provided for the background stopped.

"_What_ about Alexander?" the unmistakable voice of Isabella Valentine hissed, loud enough for them to hear even in the open rafters.

They both knew a summons when they heard one, so Vincent rolled off the thick beam, effortlessly moving his wife into a better position in his arms to land with nary a sound. Eva gave him an incredulous look but he looked entirely unrepentant, or did until he schooled his features and faced his mother and brother.

"You _did_ tell her, right?" he asked Alex. His little brother had of course forfeited his privilege as top suitor after his failure, but no one would come after him for that. His hotheadedness had actually been a good thing for once, since he hadn't told anyone. That burden fell to Vincent. Regret had been boiling in his gut all day, for he didn't know what would come of what he had done. With the suspicion he now had, how it would affect the other party involved tore at him. Some relief was found when his younger sibling nodded; at least he wouldn't have to retell the tale. "Have you had any strange dreams lately?"

The byplay of emotions that crossed the young vampire's eyes would have been entertaining had the pain not been so evident. "Not as bad as before, but yes."

Evangeline's eyebrow rose quizzically. _Vincent's get worse, but his get better? That doesn't make any sense, he hasn't conditioned his mind near as much as Vincent has. It should be the other way around._ Her husband was obviously thinking along the same lines, but just as quickly something changed, for his expression morphed to one of contemplation rather than confusion.

"Just...out of curiosity, what did you experience?"

"Like you don't know!" Alexander snapped.

Vincent didn't flinch. "Humor me."

When the anger bled out of him, he was left looking wan and exhausted. "Pain. Lots of pain. I think I saw an Ogre...fire...slashes. They kept getting blurrier. Just lots of pain, pain and heartache."

Everyone in the room noticed how pale his elder brother had gone. "No...no sense of breaking?" he murmured unsteadily, deathly quiet. "No cliff? No falling?"

"Not that I know of," Alex replied. Any further thought on the matter only caused the throbbing in his head to intensify, and that discomfort didn't go ignored.

"Boya, sit down," Eva commanded forcefully, and now all attention was on her. When he only kept looking at her, she yelled, "Now!" Any traces of humor, even the dark kind she preferred in her usual sarcasm was gone, in fact her piercing red glare was exceptionally intense. He complied immediately. Kneeling across from him, she sliced both her index fingers with her fangs and pressed them against his temples.

"What are you doing?" Isabella inquired. She understood the seriousness her daughter-in-law was trying to convey, but in all her life she had never seen what was being done.

"I'm testing him for any kind of interference. Now please, I need silence."

The blood was mostly for show, but it did have a purpose besides the aid it was to have a medium between them. Youki was notoriously hard to track, and while every race could _feel_ it on some level, only Vampires could claim to be able to sense its presence in a person deliberately. Magic in any sense was even worse because one could never be sure what kind was being used, though the one True Magic, that used by witches and wizards, trumped them all when it came to sheer diversity.

Opening herself to the flow was as natural to her as breathing, regardless of how many years had passed, and as she closed her eyes and released the threshold on her internal radar, the world around her changed. With a mental incantation used more out of habit than necessity, her eyes shot open and pinned to his, freezing him in place as her perception altered once again. No longer was she looking at his physical body, she had transcended that, and she didn't like what she saw.

His aura was tainted with shreds of another's, which she knew was what had been forced on him previously. Inexperience was evident; the schoolboy had simply smashed through his mind's natural defenses and plunged a prearranged package of misery straight into it. There was little question to why it hurt so much, but as she looked closer she felt it lead to fragments of _another_ magic, embedded far deeper than the last. It almost couldn't be distinguished at all, since it had been used solely in warping a single area of his psyche. If she had checked any later even the markings of change would have dissolved, leaving only what had been done with no one the wiser. This was intricate and without a doubt _intentional_, and she briefly wondered just how much of his month away had been spent unconscious with pounding headaches. She had seen this kind of thing before, in a time better left to the annals of history. This was the downright _erasure _of something, protected from even connecting with other memory clues by threat of elimination. He was mentally _incapable_ of linking one dot to another if it involved what had been erased, and judging by how the block was already expunging more of the newer fragments, the conclusion was obvious.

Whatever it was Vincent suspected, Alexander had already known once before, and for that someone had went in and ripped it right from his mind.

She tried to look closer, maybe get an impression, but the misshapen section flared at the sensed intrusion. With the shared connection they were holding she was blasted back like she had been physically struck, and with the return to real time she was left gasping as Alex twisted around on the ground clasping his head, trying without success not to scream. Vincent was instantly at his wife's side and Isabella by her youngest son's, but all they could do was watch until the two settled down.

The first thing Eva did was rub her forehead and bite back a few choice curses. "Well shit, boya, when you decide to piss people off you sure don't do things halfway," she groaned.

Had he been able to speak he might have defended himself, as it was he just gave her the finger and went back to being a puddle on the floor as Ivy raised his head into her lap.

Vincent copied his mother, staring down concernedly at his lover. "What do you mean?"

"_He_," she jeered, "managed to not only _find_, but _offend_, a _Nightwalker_."

The hush that fell over the room proved they all knew what could have come from that. It wasn't what a Nightwalker-class could do physically, even though if they had reached that level they were well beyond their kin; it was what they could do to their opponents' _minds_.

"But how?" her husband asked. "I'll admit the boy's illusions were powerful, but a Nightwalker?"

She shook her head. "Not him; what I found was done earlier. There were still remnants of the technique he used on you the other day, but some were being destroyed by one that had already been there. Best I can tell: boya over there found out something he shouldn't, and the Nightwalker tore it out of him. Been having headaches recently, boya? You think of something and your brain just _throbs?_"

Ashen, the young man nodded.

"Yeah, that means you were thinking too close to remembering what you forgot. Whoever it was made sure that if you tried it would hurt. It's a small discrepancy in your aura, so small I might not have noticed if it hadn't been taking care of the newer ones, but it was done by a pro. Only a Nightwalker could have done that."

Ivy's probing cerulean gaze turned introspective. "You said it was done earlier? Would a month suffice?"

"There were still traces, so I'd say that sounds about right."

Vincent hummed thoughtfully. "So that means you met it at the Academy. I wasn't aware any of the staff were Succubae or Incubi, though there were those rather amusing rumors about Kagome Liliko. So that means...a student?" He vaguely felt the shock numb his lungs as the image of his brother prone on the ground, held down by fingers of crystal and foot-long nails, flashed before his eyes. "It was her," he wheezed breathily. How he had missed the association before when the blue-haired teen looked like she had all but walked right out of a fantasy he would never know. "He had two of the _Shuzen_ sisters, a couple of Witches, a Snow Woman, and a _Nightwalker_ on the sidelines, and he chose to fight us with only his Familiar _why?_"

"...He was proving himself," his mother whispered in awe. "Alexander, you said he released Moka Shuzen's seal and put it back without her doing anything, correct?" At his confirmation, she smiled whimsically. "He was proving himself. The blood-mate of a _Shuzen_ couldn't allow her to think he would let her take care of all the problems that came from her choice. He was showing he could protect her too."

The universe of Vincent Valentine blackened at its edges. He could feel it encroaching as his breathing quickened dangerously, and only Evangeline's worried touch kept him from hyperventilating. Why? Because it all made sense.

Proving himself.

_Confess what I've become._

Protecting his family.

…_If I had to be a man of ice and snow…_

…_If I had to be a man of smoke and mirrors…_

…_If I had to be the result of the most unholy union imaginable…_

…_If I had to be everything I ever was and everything I ever despised…_

Showing them…

_You wanted to see more of what I could do? Take a look._

Showing himself…

_Moka…do you trust me enough to put this back on?_

He could.

_I am what I need to be hers already, I just need to take that last step._

He wasn't what he was.

_BREAKING._

He had gone beyond that.

_DYING_.

He was…

…_So…thirsty…_

He was…

_"The resilience of a vampire is legendary, is it not? Surely _you_ would know that?"_

He was…

…_Tsukune Aono, and I have to confess, I'm going to enjoy this far, far more than I should._

And he had been…stumbling towards him, clutching his neck.

He had been _stumbling_ towards him, and _clutching his neck_.

Vincent tried very hard not to think about what that meant, but it was no use. He may have been under a rather severe handicap…but so had Tsukune.

Tsukune Aono was a _Vampire_…and he had fought two others while under a full-fledged _rosary!_

He wasn't the only one that had a sudden epiphany. "Wait, you said he had a Snow Woman with him? Still at the academy? _Unmarried?_" Ivy put forth importunately, clearly expecting an immediate response.

"Now that you mention it," Alex began, "she certainly seemed like a Third Year, but her loyalty was firmly in the hands of that group. I had beaten Tsukune to a bloody pulp the first time and they were all right by him as soon as they saw. When Shuzen-sama was unsealed…she said something…what was it…?" His already pale skin soon matched his brother's, and when he finally spoke his voice was choked and strained, positively fearful of the implications. "I…I remember now. She said…she was going to enjoy watching someone called Kurumu take a memory from me, but she wanted me to keep this one. She said she belonged to a new Clan now."

Ivy laughed humorlessly. "Moka _Akashiya_ indeed. If she really has consummated a blood-bond with her chosen mate, she's stated beyond doubt she won't be used. To claim a new clanship even…"

Unlike the others, Eva was _not_ unaware of just how ill her husband was looking with each passing word. As strength returned to her limbs she was up quickly, steadying him against the drowsy sways of lightheadedness. "Vincent…? Vincent, honey, what's wrong?"

The room was spinning, that's what was wrong. "What if…" he croaked, then tried to wet his abruptly dry lips, "what if she had reason to?"

Slit pupils practically disintegrated into their crimson surroundings, which showed just how plainly she understood what he was trying to say. Isabella looked similarly disarmed, however Alexander again appeared as though his head was trying to implode on him. She staggered in place, quite a feat considering she was on her knees holding him, and inhaled sharply when all the pieces jumbling about her mind fell into position.

"Who…did you say he had with him again?"

He blinked, uncertain as to where she was going. "Two I can name: Moka and Kokoa Shuzen. According to Alex, the Nightwalker is apparently named Kurumu, and I couldn't tell you the name of the Snow Wo—" What she was getting at hit him like a bucket of cold water. "No. No no-no-no-no-no-no-_no_."

"You said it yourself: he used the illusions of a Succubus; an honest-to-God Snow transformation; the magic of a Witch, and healed like a Vampire. What else could he be?"

Try as she might to digest this information, the famed Ivy Valentine couldn't help but feel like a youngling even after over two centuries of life. Another mirthless laugh forced itself from deep in her chest as she shook her head in amazement. "Tsukune Aono. I remember where I heard that name now. He, along with Moka Shuzen and this little group of friends, infiltrated the hidden realm of the Snow People to save one of their own. _They_ are what defeated Kahlua Shuzen's placement as an enforcer during their dispute with Fairy Tale. Later he alone was said to have destroyed an entire Yakuza organization that had also been under the control of Fairy Tale. The name never meant much to anyone since young Moka's was always there before it."

"There's a good explanation for that," the youngest Valentine claimed dryly. "You weren't there when he released her seal. You can't _measure_ that amount of power! The first time I met her she _destroyed_ me without the slightest effort; this last time she didn't _do_ anything, she just _stood_ there, and it felt like I was standing in the eye of a hurricane! It's like she gets stronger just by breathing! Anyone who's been in her presence when she's who she was meant to be wouldn't think about some boy in the background."

She shot him a withering glare that had the desired effect, on _both_ her sons. "This family owes both of them a great debt; either one could have ended your lives at any time and been perfectly within their rights for threatening their bond. Why you chose to continue when she even _suggested_ they might be blood-bound is beyond me. Alexander I might understand; you, Vincent, I'm at a loss to explain. Consider yourselves lucky they decided to spare you, and not once, but _twice_. Before she was sealed and disappeared, Shuzen-san's strength was almost fit for legend; I've never had any thoughts to the contrary. It's the boy that troubles me. How could we only be learning of the existence of such a powerful Youkai _now?_ Surely a vampire of his caliber would have been known before now."

Her oldest son started chuckling helplessly. "'If I had to be everything I ever was and everything I ever despised'…" he recited. Again, what he had first dismissed as mere words was found to hold so much more when put in the proper context. He wanted to be sick. He really, really did. "It felt like every piece of him was breaking down, like he was cracking into millions of shards that could never be repaired. When the pain ended he met Death, only a new life of bloodlust was there to greet him back. The reason we haven't heard of something of his caliber before now is because there _wasn't_ something of his caliber before now."

Evangeline could only stare. _No, not that. Please, not that. Please tell me he isn't…_

"Tsukune Aono may be a Vampire, he may even be the first Vampire since the Elders to unlock the ketsueki karite skill and become a Chi no Kenja…" He shared an aggrieved look with his lover until guilt lowered his eyes. "…but he wasn't born that way."

Her fingers dug grooves into the floor.

_Damn it._

…

.


	22. Mentorship: Pt II

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Rosario+Vampire, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story. Simple enough, ne? Just don't copy from this story and we're all good!

.

**Author's Notes:** Well, up here seems to be a good place to put the notes, so I thought I should continue it. It's funny that my releases were compared to Gabriel Blessing's, because I follow his stuff as well. The difference between us—other than the obvious storytelling style—is the amount of spare time we have. He's confessed to watching three full anime series' in a week while still writing his chapters. When I was in high school I updated every week almost without fail. Now, I'm a bit more constricted. At my job I work stupidly insane hours, so between them and my attempts at having a life, my writing is mostly restricted to my weekends.

So, the next chapter. The reason it took so long is it just wouldn't get to where I wanted it to. I've advanced some in this monster, but I didn't make it to the larger plot expansion I was hoping to include. The next chapter will likely be shorter, at least that's the hope. There I'll go on a bit more about some of the things introduced in this chapter and get on with what's happening.

I explain a bit of my thoughts on some of the things in the R+V universe, taking into account what I've added of course. The manga itself I actually haven't touched since chapter 34, because at this point I'm just waiting for it to be done so I can read it all at once rather than try to make sense of what's going on month to month.

To everyone that's reviewed: THANK YOU! All the favorites are awesome too, and I love the response I've been getting! More would always make me happy, but as a friend pointed out to me, the biggest thing is the consistency between chapters, and I have to say, THANK YOU ALL! It's so nice to see people are enjoying what I take the time to write, 'cause hey, if I was focusing on the sheer number of reviews, I could break this up into three chapters and wait until I got some, LOL! Quality over quantity as they say, and you guys have been great.

Hope you enjoy the chapter!

…

**Mentorship - Pt II**

**.**

_Damn it!_ Moka Akashiya swore inwardly as she shook her head for the nth time.

Tsukune had done as her inner self had requested the night before, which was rather basic in its simplicity. She had wanted to sleep with him, as in go to bed with him next to her. The rosary could go back on in the morning as far as she was concerned, and after the day they had had, no one had said anything against it. Actually, it was more like the group had seen their respective states and decided they would both be better off with rest, though of all the people it was _Mizore_ who had looked rather irritated at the delay. Her eyes could be very expressive when they wanted to be.

When they both awoke he had kissed her goodbye and restored her outer personality, then kissed her as well and told her he had some things to do and wouldn't see her until later. Naturally, she had asked if she could come along, but he had only smiled and said it was a surprise. _That_ scared her, given that after what they had seen yesterday evening, she could only guess as to what _his_ surprise would be. Rei's new look fit her nicely, but that wasn't what she was bothering her.

She hadn't been able to stop blushing all day!

Her friends noticed as she expressed her discomfort yet again, and Kurumu grinned widely. "Inner getting to you again?"

Her faced flamed anew at the reminder, and she nodded. She had thought _she_ had been insatiable after finally getting to be with Tsukune again. Quite clearly she had been mistaken. Some of the things they had done…it was…it was almost too much for the innocent vampiress to handle even in her own _memories!_ Freed from the withdrawal of his blood and his body, what _she_ had done was almost too much for her to handle! Not that she regretted it one tiny bit, or wouldn't do it again if given the choice.

Of course, she didn't even need to _tell_ Kurumu, the succubus had known instantly just from the look on her face. Mizore was finding her own quiet amusement at her situation, and it hadn't taken Yukari long to figure out what was going on, much to her mortification. No thirteen-year-old should know some of those words! And not that she had anything against their oldest family member, quite the opposite in fact, but she was profusely glad Ruby wasn't with them at that moment. Right then she didn't know if she'd ever be able to look her in the eyes again!

'Inner' Moka found the whole thing to be hilarious, which only exacerbated the problem.

"Why so flushed, Moka?" the blue-haired vixen crooned. "Didn't you say he had to make you forget your name before he got near that rosary of yours?" Her smirk couldn't have gotten any bigger. "He must have done a pretty good job since it was reverse Moka we talked to yesterday, so what's eating you?"

_**Tsukune,**_ the vampiress within responded succinctly, and her emerald-eyed doppelganger almost swallowed her own tongue as she made to speak.

_Ura-chan!_ she shrieked as the currently sealed personality chuckled.

Having noticed the increased intensity of the heat now coming from her friend's face, Kurumu laughed. "Oops, maybe not the best question, was it? Inner must have made her time memorable, huh?"

"She…! And he…! They…!" Moka sputtered defensively, but she just couldn't give words to what she wanted to say.

_**And think, you're in my body, **_**you**_** could do all that too.**_

Her sputtering turned into instant spluttering, earning another laugh from the rosary.

"Hello," a new voice interjected.

After training solidly the whole time Tsukune was away and with threats coming out of nowhere, they didn't take too well to being shocked anymore. Where normal people might have jumped and ended at that, the newcomer was suddenly faced with four battle-ready monsters, all prepared to defend themselves. Eyeing the icy blade and finely honed nails held threateningly at his neck, the young teen rolled his gaze back to the Third Years effectively holding him at knifepoint.

"Hmm, I suppose I should have introduced myself first," he sighed lazily, careful not to push himself into the sharp edges at his skin yet not visibly worried. "My name is Isao Nura, First Year. You, you, and you," he persisted, pointing at Moka, Kurumu, and Mizore respectively, "The headmaster wants to see us. Would you be so kind as to remove your weapons from my throat? As much as I love the idea of not having to talk, I'd rather avoid the death part."

Sheepish, the group relaxed simultaneously. Being snuck up on was one thing, accidently attacking a fellow student who had done nothing more than try to get their attention so he could deliver a message was another entirely. By all accounts, the teen hardly looked like he cared, still standing in the same lackadaisical manner and tapping his foot. At fifteen like most First Years, the boy was only slightly taller than Kurumu, and dressed in what could loosely be considered the school uniform despite the summer reprieve. The brown pants and white shirt were a must, but as a substitute for the typical green blazer, a dark red haori was draped over his shoulders, and a paper umbrella was being cradled between his folded arms. His strangely dual tone hair of black and charcoal looked naturally windblown backwards, styled away from russet eyes that managed to convey both disinterest and confidence. The very least they could say about the young man was that he didn't ogle them openly like so many others, which was a good mark for his character in their books, though to be fair they couldn't be sure he wasn't.

"Why didn't he send Ruby?" a confused Yukari asked.

The freshman shrugged casually. "I was told she was unavailable. I'm sorry Sendou-senpai, but I need to borrow your friends for a while."

Any apprehension the pint-sized witch might have had about the unfamiliar Youkai was annihilated that second, and any further conversation with her was impossible as she danced around proclaiming, "Someone finally called me 'senpai' ~desu!"

He quirked an eyebrow at the display while Kurumu shook her head in her hands. "Excitable, isn't she?"

"You have no idea," Moka replied dryly. "How did you know her name?"

The look that question received made her cough nervously. "Don't insult my intelligence, Akashiya-senpai. I may not like using it, but I do have it. Everyone in school knows who the Newspaper Club is, even newbies like me. Now not to sound rude, but please, if we could be going? Shuzen-senpai is already on her way. The only thing I hate more than over-talking and over-thinking is all those stairs to the headmaster's office; the sooner I get that over with, the better."

Mizore snickered softly. "An interesting philosophy."

He shrugged again. "Whatever works, right?"

"True enough," she conceded, when Kurumu proved that particular point by choosing that moment to squish herself to her duet partner.

"Come on, come on! Let's go see what the Exorcist wants with us now!"

That once risen eyebrow returned to its former position, and Isao pondered aloud, "'Now'? This has happened before?"

The succubus of their group slapped him on the back playfully. "Yup! Heck, we probably see him more than the teachers do!"

As they walked away, Isao Nura asked himself just what in the circles of Hell he had gotten himself into.

…

While they were all gone, someone else had to find something to do in the meanwhile.

Being alone wasn't strange to Yukari Sendou, her past had required her to get used to the state sooner than most people would ever like. After years with friends that had literally turned themselves into a family, semantics be damned, she found herself in a situation she hadn't been in for a long while. Alone. It wasn't that often that _everyone_ found themselves called away for one reason or another, but even though she was physically by herself, she was warmed by the knowledge that her family would always come back to her.

Safe in that, she had gone back to Ruby's room and pulled out one of their seal schematics. It was painfully obvious that with what was going on in their lives, being able to get to each other as fast as humanly possible simply wasn't enough. Tsukune had _in_human resources at his disposal and if he had gotten there any later things could have gone much worse than they had very quickly. They needed a way to get to each other _instantly_ if they were separated.

Teleportation magic was terribly complicated and necessitated huge amounts of power, but power was one thing they were in no shortage of anymore. Tsukune had merely brushed their armbands to give them some more juice, just in case, and she knew that only if she pushed the majority of the energy she could channel into her wristband would she be able to match what he had added so easily. Thinking about the batteries they had made brought back the ache of her body, a thing she had been dutifully ignoring ever since Tsukune had so helpfully supercharged them. It was nothing, just a slight add to the dull pain she had been experiencing ever since the monochromatic duo had taken to training their underused muscles. The rewards that would come from those pains would make every little twinge of discomfort well worth it.

It all stemmed from the fact that magical batteries, especially of the size they had created, hadn't been done before. The man-eating plants employed by Ruby's deceased mistress were, in effect, Familiars that could also be used as magical supplements if need be, though using them as such obligated a heavy price. They required no energy to maintain, only the care any regular plant would have need of, and they were natural repositories for energy, as their floral makeup gathered sunlight and their carnivorous nature made swift work of any vermin—or meat in general, as they had found out—trespassing their borders. It wouldn't be plausible at the school, not to mention they weren't exactly portable.

From that came the idea of using their own bodies as conduits to keep the natural energy stored safely, as even if gemstones had the capacity to focus Nature's power, no non-living body could stockpile energy. Since plants were out, their options were severely limited until they turned to runic circles. Using magically-sensitive metals, which had been a pain to track down—and would have been harder had the headmaster not come through with one of the bonuses he occasionally gave Ruby over the course of her employment—they had alchemized them into the most receptive form possible and transcribed whole new concepts into the straps. It had taken Mizore's steady hand and impossibly sharp ice to do it, but they had. Instead of trying to hold the power in one place or gathering it through a natural magic circuit like a supernaturally-engineered plant, the energy would be inserted manually by another person and continually streamed through the body of the witch or wizard wearing it so it didn't diffuse back into the atmosphere. The magical metal would magnetize the energy once it was put in and the directions the runes gave it once there would keep it a constant flow. As long as it had that it wouldn't disperse, regardless of how much there was or how long it took to do so.

The other program in it was very straightforward: increase the amount allowed through as their bodies became more accustomed to handling the power. Combined with the training to strengthen their bodies, they were doubling their effectiveness. There were safeguards in place in the innumerable symbology they had used to enchant the belts, just in case, but they weren't expecting any trouble. Given that theirs was the first time something like that had been done before, they didn't have anything to go off of either. Basically, the bracelets emulated continually casting spells in a perpetual cycle, increasing in potency as it was safe to do so. With none of the energy having to come from the witch herself, fatigue of that kind wasn't a problem, though the strain was to be expected. As their Youki grew, so too did their ability to cast after they had used up the excess. The strain would have been _much_ larger had the energy merely been siphoned from Nature with a Focus and set into the same cycle; with the power having already been 'purified' in a sense, through the body of the one inserting it, it came out as one hundred percent battle ready.

They were planning on using the same type of runic programming to set a very specific spell into some innocuous pieces of jewelry, or something similar, to create a group of talismans that were interconnected. By eliminating the variables of the spell itself and giving it a preset destination even, things were simplified enormously. The Rosary of Judgment had a similar enchantment in it, though much, _much_ more complicated. It was the enchanting of the items themselves that would prove to be the tricky part, as they needed to be done at the same time, and that required colossal amounts of energy. Luckily there were three of them that could help out with the procedure, and one just so happened to be a veritable powerhouse.

So, she was using all of her considerable genius and every one of the obscure tomes Ruby owned—inherited from her former mistress or loaned to her by the headmaster—to finesse the circles upon circles of runes they would need to make the enchantment work properly, and more importantly, permanent. The challenge was well above the high school level or any dabbler in the arcane arts; this was low seal master level she was sure. As someone so rarely pushed mentally, Yukari was savoring the difficulty. She would enjoy it even more if she was actually doing it for fun and not out of a very real need.

As if called by the cramping of her hand, the door opened to enter a much needed distraction. Ruby hardly had time to turn around before Yukari was off her chair and into her fellow witch's arms, gaining muted chuckles as she squeezed her younger friend comfortingly.

"Where'd you go? Tsukune and Rei went somewhere this morning and Moka and the others were called to the headmaster's office ~desu!"

Her elder's face darkened for only a moment, then she patted the girl on the shoulder in what was obviously meant to mean, "don't worry". Her next destination was her fridge, where she gargled one of her premade concoctions and swallowed prior to popping an ice-cube into her mouth. The sigh of relief was probably more perturbing to the genius than her own earlier questions.

"Are you okay?"

Ruby nodded brightly, and was saved from having to explain anything when the door opened again, this time admitting another of their wayward friends, though without a good deal of the color she had left with.

For the second time in minutes, Yukari was given cause for concern. "What did the Exorcist want?"

Conflicted between trying to falsely reassure the young witch or blushing automatically should she look at the older one in the room, Moka chose to offer a weak smile and turn back to the door. "Why don't we talk about this outside? I need the fresh air right now, plus there's someone you need to meet, Ruby, if you haven't already."

Going from the look on her face, what awaited her probably wasn't anything new. If it concerned the school, Ruby had been getting increasingly involved in the day to day goings-on thanks to her employer, and in all truth none of them really knew just how deeply she was rooted into the academy. She told what she could, that was what counted.

Even from the top balcony, they could all see Kurumu talking animatedly with a relaxed young man that seemed to be taking her excitement in stride while Mizore looked on in amusement. Once disregarded, the black clothes he was holding in his arms became all too important when they could be seen for what they really were, though Yukari was the only one to tense when she discovered that. One didn't get to be considered—and rightfully so—the smartest girl Youkai Academy had ever seen by being unable to add two and two, and yet she ardently wished for that answer to be anything but four in this circumstance. Her pleading gaze on her family sobered the atmosphere like a wet blanket, but they couldn't blame her, nor was her question even needed to be voiced aloud.

"Guess who just got drafted as the female lead in Student Police, the musical?" Moka tried to say lightheartedly, but nervousness made it sound like nothing but a lame joke.

Predictably, Yukari's jaw dropped. This was so much different than the scenario she envisioned it just wasn't funny. "Y-You mean _you're_ the head of the Student Police?" she all but screeched.

The young man supporting himself with a paper umbrella chuckled in what was sure to become a deep bass as he grew older. "The structure of the PSC was changed a lot from what I've heard, Sendou-senpai. She's only one of the leaders. The Third Year mentors have a guy and a girl as the main figureheads, while the Second and First Years only have a pair between them. Kinda interesting setup, actually. Takes lots of responsibility off my shoulders, at least!"

"Oh, right!" the pinkette exclaimed. "Ruby, this is Isao Nura, he was chosen as the male representative of the freshman and juniors."

"In other words: he's the one most likely to take over as the male lead when we all graduate," Mizore extrapolated quietly.

To this, the coral-eyed masochist smiled benevolently and bowed, her graciousness and familiarity enough to convey a greeting without words.

"Likewise, Toujou-san," he replied to her silent welcome with a lazy grin, confirming what they had all suspected from the start. Ruby was a _lot_ more connected than any of them gave her credit for. Though like Rei had pointed out all those weeks ago, simply knowing about the machinations of the master in no way made her able to speak about them.

In short order the explanation that had been given to them was given to the pubescent witch, and the genius found herself nodding in approval.

"Sounds good in theory. We'll just have to see what happens when school starts up again ~desu!" Right after she said that, her intelligent mind found a glaring flaw she just couldn't ignore. "And they chose _you_ to be a part of it?" she gasped, pointing accusingly at Kurumu.

Said succubus' cheeks puffed out indignantly. "Hey! I've gotten my grades up! I didn't even have to go to summer school this year!"

"You skipped out on it in First Year anyway ~desu!"

She blushed. "O-Oh yeah…"

"We were all chosen for a reason," her Snow Woman companion stated with calm confidence. "When you think about it I have less of a reason to be on it than she does; I was almost expelled in First Year for all the classes I missed. Moka as a leader gives the group a kinder impression than the past ones, and Kurumu supports that. If she's there, I'm there. We're both powerful, but our real strength lies in our teamwork. Let's not forget that we've had audiences for some of our training sessions, so we'll also be known as able to do what we need to."

What she didn't say was what her family already knew. Her experiences growing up and her own natural tendencies had made her a shy person outside of those she trusted, and while she could be blunt and to the point when it concerned certain things—such as everyone she held dear—she would still rather hide behind boxes than be out in the spotlight. Kurumu was her opposite in the same way black was to white, and not all of those differences were good things. Tsukune kept them grounded and together they balanced each other out, the same could be said in a social setting. That wasn't to say they couldn't do anything on their own, they would succeed either way, but together they would _thrive_. Had they not been distracted, a Vampire could very well have fallen to their might, and that was no small feat.

"Yeah, but the really great thing about this is the official protection we can give Onee-chan," a familiar voice added from behind.

It seemed like days since they had last seen Moka's step-sister, when in reality it was only last night. She had been ecstatic to see her beloved sister out in full form, yet it was slightly tempered by what she had obviously been doing while she was there. She wasn't about to say anything about it, not when her sister had come out to see them despite what—or who—she would rather do. With a blood-mate, not to mention the lack of activity without him around, she could understand her dilemma. Still, as much as she might want to deny a certain turned human existed, she couldn't deny the happiness he gave to her sister. _He has his uses,_ she supposed.

There was much gaping done when they got a good look at her, for while she carried her new uniform draped over an arm, that did nothing to hide the leather choker, complete with rosary, now around her neck. Her skin reddened under their scrutiny and she found herself fiddling with the item uncertainly. "D-Does it look good?"

"On the one hand I have to say it does," the member most prone to know fashion, namely Kurumu, admitted. "The other just tells me we need to get that sister-complex of yours looked at."

"Sh-Sh-Shut up! What do you think, Onee-chan?"

Moka made a show of thinking it over. "I'm of two minds about it too." The others all rolled their eyes, except Isao, who didn't get the joke. Suddenly serious, Kokoa fidgeted under her older sister's grave stare. "The ring wasn't working anymore?"

The redhead sighed. There was the crux of the matter. Ever since her hair had started losing its color it had been getting progressively faster in its advance. She could feel her power even better than she had before; she was _growing_. She was _still_ growing. With what was happening to Moka, they had all gotten scared of what could happen to _her_ was that found out. As a proof-of-concept for their first project, Ruby and Yukari had made a simple enough talisman in the form of a plain ring, inlaid with the illusion of her once full head of red hair and dark green eyes.

A month is a long time, and over that time she began to appreciate the ring more and more as her strength bubbled within her. She knew. Though her power was unstable as it fluxed and bloated, she still held control of it, like any vampire. She held control of it, but she could no longer disguise herself willingly. If her Youki continued to grow as it had, even with the ring her malicious power would soon unnerve everyone she was around. She now _needed_ a rosary.

In answer to the question, she offered, "Pretty soon it wouldn't have done enough."

Her sibling nodded sympathetically. "You can remove it?"

"I would have skewered him on Kou-chan if I couldn't, Dark Lord or not."

They both knew how important it was that _one_ vampire among them had access to their power whenever needed. Had Moka been able to unseal herself, neither Vincent or Alexander would have had a chance even with Tsukune away. Since she had to rely on him for that, the situation had quickly gotten dangerous. While they were all gaining strength at a truly remarkable pace by anyone's standards, it wasn't enough, not enough to compensate for the overwhelming might a Vampire brought to the field of battle. To face facts, they had gotten extremely lucky. Alexander was hardly any older than them, and though fearsome in skill, Vincent couldn't have reached fifty, and that was being enormously generous to the older brother.

They needed to be prepared for the other ones, those that measures decades in the ticks of a clock, those with experience far beyond what any of them could hope to emulate anytime soon. Worse yet, there were also the ones with power to match the former, given to them simply by birth. The Shuzen family held the highest pedestal in that regard, and they still had the two _older_ sisters unaccounted for, waiting in the wings. Things could go bad more ways than they could even think of, so they needed to be ready for any and all eventualities.

Having a rosary was simultaneously a curse and a blessing. One was thought weaker when wearing it, but it also kept the true strength of its bearer hidden until absolutely necessary. With it, a person could be any monster imaginable so long as it was concealed, and the element of surprise was never one to take lightly.

Tsukune was a living example of this. Brute force was deadly in enough quantities, but having the skill to not need to rely on it was a rank unto itself. As his rosary sapped his true strength, his enemies came to know the lesser talents he could employ and would adjust accordingly. Given that as long as his seal was out of sight no one outside of the school would know what he really was, his extra transformations would succeed in confusing them further, while hopefully leaving them open when he could at last show himself to the world. That strength coupled with the skill he acquired while being denied it would be incredible. Moka could only hope it would be incredible enough.

A cough caught their attention, where they all looked to see the subject of those thoughts smirking mischievously. "And the whole club's together. Here I thought it would take a _little_ looking."

The words were hardly out of his mouth before an excited succubus had literally jumped into him with his name as her battle-cry. Luckily he had plenty of experience with that kind of encounter, even when her legs wrapped around his waist and their continued vertical existence banked solely on him. He had yet to figure out how to breathe cotton instead of oxygen, however, as much as that would have helped the current situation.

"Hmm, so that happens even when you're around other people," another voice interjected, its body formerly hidden by his larger size.

Alarmed, Kurumu looked at the newest addition from her place suffocating Tsukune, but when she—along with everyone else—did, the change couldn't have happened more quickly. Her happy countenance darkened to something bordering murderous, and with quick and deliberate movements had shifted from her lover's grip, pushing him protectively behind her as she flared her full features like a hissing cat. Yukari had gone from white as snow to red with rage, and her wand was in her hand before anyone could think to ask where she kept it. Akin to butterflies taking flight, the air exploded into a flurry of flying steel cards, each floating threateningly around the blond Youko; and, as unlikely as it seemed, Moka's reaction was easily the most extreme. The cute pacifist adopted a hunched, near feral stance as a hiss was spit from between teeth wielding large fangs, and thankfully for Noriko's bowels no one was able to see the ghostly form of the vampire within the rosary, for if her outer self looked vicious, _she_ looked like she would gain no greater joy than to bathe in her blood. No doubt the journey to get to that stage would be relished every step of the way.

Confused, but recognizing what her friends were doing, Mizore backed Kurumu up like the partner she was.

Ruby and Kokoa just looked on in utter confusion.

For her part, Noriko knew she should have been less surprised than she was after what she had been told, but all things considered she couldn't be blamed for it, nor could she be blamed for her knees shaking as badly as they were. It wasn't often one found themselves facing down death in so eager a form. Casting a blank, slightly remorseful look to Tsukune, she said, "You didn't tell me the whole truth in regards to my cousin, did you?"

He shrugged apologetically. "You took what I did say better than I thought you would. If you thought I was lying, here's the proof."

By then the others had taken in the same nuances that differentiated her from her cousin and were in various stages of relaxing, though they kept a distrustful eye on her even as they made the former Ghoul their focus.

"Tsukune…who is this?" the charm mistress whispered in a tone choked with remembered pain.

Taking the cue, the young blond curtsied as steadily as she could in the face of so much malice. "My name is Noriko Myobu, and I've been chosen as the female head for the First and Second Years in the Public Safety Commission."

The silence was deafening.

"This is a joke," Moka muttered quietly as she trembled in restrained fury. "A sick, _sick_ joke."

"Um, not to sound stupid or anything, but why are you all up in arms?" Kokoa had to ask. She could count on one hand the number of times her sister's outer form had been visibly angry. Hate didn't seem like something she was even _capable_ of, so why one girl was garnering such a reaction definitely lit her curiosity.

"First year," Kurumu replied through a distinct hitch of emotion, "a student named Kuyou was the leader of the Student Police."

"He looked just like her…" Yukari put in somberly, where Moka took over.

"We were accused, tried, and convicted without anyone being told, and our sentence was _death!_ He would have killed me but…but…"

"…but I jumped in the way," Tsukune finished softly.

Kokoa, Ruby, Isao _and_ Noriko all gasped.

"So _forgive me_ if I'm a bit skeptical of this decision!" she sneered. "It's not like someone similar almost killed the man who would become my _blood-mate!_"

Tsukune stood a bit taller after that statement. No matter how often it was said, he always loved hearing those two simple words. Quieting her simmering resentment with a gentle kiss that provoked his favorite whimper from the back of her throat, he held her cheek in one hand and brushed back her hair with his other. "Everything turned out okay then, it'll turn out okay now. Just because she's his cousin doesn't mean she's just like him. Would you like people making that assumption with you and your sisters?" Disgusted, she shook her head. "I've already had the chance to talk with her; she seems like she'd do a really good job as a leader."

_**Only you, Tsukune. Only you,**_ Inner Moka sighed, in something between amazement and disbelief.

Having seen for herself the very real bitterness held towards her relative, just as Tsukune had said, Noriko bowed as low as she would allow herself for mere hearsay. She would investigate more on her own. "I won't let you down, Senpai."

The fledgling vampire chuckled. "You know, I get the feeling you really won't." Seeing as Yukari had at last dispelled her large collection of deadly cards, he motioned to the group as a whole. "Now that all that is over with, we can get some proper introductions done. This wonderful woman right here is Moka Akashiya; that vision of beauty over there is Kurumu Kurono, and next to her is the lovely Mizore Shirayuki." They all blushed in turn as they were announced, but he paid that no mind. "Let's not forget our resident genius and budding idol Yukari Sendou; and last but certainly not least, the Newspaper Club's assistant advisor Ruby Toujou. I'd add more adjectives, but I don't know how comfortable you would be with me complimenting a staff member on how pretty they are."

Indeed, Noriko's cheeks had dusted with pink at the mention, but Ruby seemed very pleased with herself at least, as was the intention.

"You're pretty fearless even with the faculty, aren't you?" she asked him pointedly, and earned herself another shrug from the older boy.

"Ruby was a friend before she started working here," he explained plainly. "Then again, with how much she's been doing lately we might have to cut back on that casualness. For all I know we may have to start calling her 'sensei' soon!"

So it came to be that aforementioned witch's mind instantly put that into a much _different_ scenario, and muffled giggles came from her as her face went rosy.

A collective step back was taken by any around her. Whatever she was thinking…they'd rather not know.

Undaunted, Tsukune continued, "So that's the Newspaper Club, other than Nekonome-sensei of course. Now I had an idea earlier; we should get to work on a special about the new and improved Student Police force! Maybe we could even put in a brief bio of each member, and we've got one of the leaders here too!" He paused there, confused. "But wait, you said you were the _female_ leader. Does that mean there's a male one too? And more for different years?"

As he had kept doing over and over during their bouts of conversation, Noriko was once again struck stunned by her senior, this time in something near horror. The noble Youko actually slapped a hand to her face incredulously. "You mean to tell me you don't know about the leadership system that was put into place?" A shake of his head confirmed it, and she sighed before resuming her usual poise. "There are two leaders—one male, one female—for the freshman and juniors. These are the ones that are learning the ropes, after a fashion, from the two senior leaders since there's so little time left in the year. The younger ones can be changed, but they obviously thought it would be a good idea to have a command system in place right away."

"I turned down the head position for the lower years," Kokoa informed them as she waved a hand dismissively. "It's not really much of a title when you're under someone anyway. I've been training with Onee-chan for the past month; now that her boy-toy's back I might get to train with _Onee-sama!_" The way her eyes were sparkling was quite disturbing, to tell the truth.

"But wouldn't you be under Moka in any case if you were the junior leader?" Yukari questioned, to which the redhead scoffed.

"A Vampire is a natural-born leader! My sister and I know plenty enough to do the job already. I'd improve more working with her outside of some formal function! Besides, I don't want the job next year. When you all graduate I'll just take over the Newspaper Club; beat some sense into the next generation, ya know?"

Kurumu shuddered. "I can really see her doing that."

"Hey, better than a womanizing pervert, right ~desu?"

Ruby just shook her head in exasperated amusement.

"Funny you should mention that," their brown-eyed friend began, "because I've convinced Myobu-san to help us out for a bit. This year didn't go any better than the last one when it came to recruitment. We may have gained Rei, but I don't even know what to do with her come next year, or what _she'll_ want to do. I say we use this opportunity to draw in some extra members; maybe if they like it enough they'll even join."

Wary glares were sent the vixen's way once more, but it would be stupid of them to turn down the assistance, not including the fact that after they graduated Kokoa would be the only one left, barring the staff advisors naturally. Since the safety commission wasn't a club so much as it was a staff-appointed responsibility, members _did_ have the opportunity to do other things in their off time, but they were also constantly on-duty and couldn't allow loyalties to affect decisions should they need to be made. They all knew this, it had been explained to them clearly, and the Newspaper Club knew they were in an ideal position to do both, as what better place was there to report the news than from where the news was happening. As long as they stayed true to the facts, they were coming out ahead in this deal.

They weren't the only ones that noticed this.

"Would you have room for one more?" Isao spoke up at last, and almost everyone jumped when the seemingly invisible teen made himself known.

"Oh my goodness!" Moka exclaimed, "I'm so sorry, Nura-san! Tsukune, this is Isao Nura, he's a First Year."

He bowed. "I'm also the other trainee leader for the commission."

The only male vampire among them felt a terrible feeling build up in his gut, but he forced himself to bow back. "So how did you meet up?"

His pink-haired lover suddenly looked uncomfortable, and that feeling grew. "Well…he was the one that came to pick us up for the headmaster. Mizore, Kurumu and I are all part of the Safety Commission. I'm the senior female head."

Tsukune had the inexplicable urge to bash his head against the nearest hard object.

Meanwhile, Noriko's dignified demeanor gained a smug smirk. "I believe this occasion calls for an 'I told you so'."

With a longsuffering sigh, he retorted, "You might remember I agreed with you, right?" At their obvious bewilderment, he drew himself up and gave an overdramatic stage bow. "In case you hadn't guessed, I'm a member too. At first I thought I was going to be the only one, but it makes sense that if Moka is a leader than I'm there too. She'll be great, and with me there to release her if she needs it we're all good. That makes one head we're missing, otherwise we've got the start of a great story!"

While they were digesting that, they also observed that the Kuyou lookalike had started staring at the person she had arrived with yet again. When Tsukune became aware of that, he almost couldn't bring himself to look. He didn't want to know. He really didn't. He looked anyway. Sure enough, he cringed when he saw the look on her face. "…What is it now?"

"I honestly thought you already knew," Noriko stated simply. "You weren't surprised at all when I mentioned it to the headmaster; you were only surprised by me."

Mizore saw Ruby's wringing hands and narrowed her magnificent ice-blue eyes. "He's the last leader, isn't he?"

Tsukune groaned when both his masochistic lover and the Spirit Fox nodded in unison.

"I knew the other shoe had to drop sometime. Last time the school had a festival I was put on the damn council, so of course this time I'm head of freakin' security!"

"It could be worse!" Yukari chimed in, and her caramel-eyed love-interest raised a brow curiously.

"_How_ could it be any worse?"

She tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Hmm, actually, I don't know. That's what people usually say in this kind of situation though ~desu!"

Ruby put her hand on his shoulder in what was meant to be a comforting manner, and it was, for the second it took him to instinctively seek out her condition as his powers allowed. Everything else flew from his mind as she became his primary concern. "You're hurt!"

Her eyes widened at the exclamation, along with everyone else's. She shook her head vigorously, but that didn't stop him from grabbing her hand. Not seconds later he was jumping around the area clasping his mouth, muffling as many invectives as he knew. Being who he was, that wasn't very many, but he created some extraordinarily imaginative ones on the fly if they were interpreting him correctly.

Finally he just fell to the ground and moaned piteously. "Ohwww…thaht hurth…"

Upon being glared at by the remainder of her family, Ruby shrunk back, yet she did still move her tongue around her mouth experimentally. Finding herself unexpectedly pain-free, she smiled brilliantly. She would have proceeded to give Tsukune a most memorable kiss had they not been in the company of two impressionable First Years, but made a mental note to make it up to him at the nearest possible opportunity.

When the man made the arduous journey to sit upright, the groans of his muscles were almost as audible as his actual groans, but not nearly as loud as his bones popping into place. Idly rubbing the sudden soreness of his body where he could reach it, he might have said something had he wanted to make the effort. He found it just as easy to look over at his pain-loving witch expectantly, doubtlessly inquiring as to the nature of the injuries he had just incurred for her, and in a way she stared back with just as much interest.

She had no idea what that power entailed, but even the aches her magical battery had been putting her through had vanished. In fact, she felt _great_. After the others had sung the praises of the sleep-inducing healing formula she had slipped them, she had taken it herself later on to speed up her progress. How she felt now was eerily reminiscent of that, as though her body had been returned to peak efficiency and strengthened by the damage previously done. It had been a while since she had indulged in that potion, and she and Yukari had even empowered the commencement sequence for the wristbands before they had placed them on. Combined with the energy Tsukune filled them with so quickly after, their bodies hadn't been in as good of shape as they could have been before subjecting them to that, though fortunately they had been spared direct damage in the confrontation. The results weren't momentous by any means now that she was back to full health, but she did feel noticeably stronger, and the battery wasn't hurting her as fast as it had earlier. Judging by the amount of cards Yukari had been able to summon so seamlessly, the primary function worked just as well. They worked!

More pressing was what Tsukune had just done.

"You sure were busy in Paradise, weren't you?" she quipped.

He grinned innocently, as if saying, 'who, me?' His quirked eyebrow implied a similar question right back at her, and she twirled some of her hair around a finger playfully, deftly avoiding the look.

"Are you okay?" The skepticism in his expression grew, and she rubbed her neck fretfully. "I'll take that as a maybe?"

"Whahd do yew thiunk?" he countered petulantly.

Puzzled, Kurumu asked, "What happened?"

Ruby's bright smile returned with a vengeance. "Tsukune here decided to heal me without asking what was wrong first. I'm grateful though; I wouldn't have been able to talk for a while if he hadn't."

Everyone summed up their thoughts best with a synchronized, "Huh?"

Those thoughts came to a screeching halt when the witch stuck out her tongue, revealing a small jewel glittering in the middle.

"I would have been able to accelerate the healing process with my remedies, but this was faster. No possibility of infection either!"

"Why on earth would you do that to yourself?" Moka virtually yelled, and the masochist's smile turned devious.

"Besides the obvious?" she hinted impishly as she licked her lips.

Both males present shifted awkwardly, and Tsukune was eternally thankful that he was already sitting down.

On the other hand, Yukari was much more practically-minded, which considering the circumstances was downright unusual. "That's…ingenious!"

The older ebony-haired woman nodded proudly, and when the rest of their family didn't seem to be catching on, she showed them again. This time when the clear gem caught the light, their eyes lit up to match. As a witch's most closely-guarded secret, she wasn't going to say it aloud when two people she didn't trust on that level were around, but the ones that did know understood.

Her tongue was pierced, and pierced with a Dragon's Tear. There was no chance of her being disarmed anymore.

"Win-win scenario for you, huh?" Kurumu snarked teasingly, and Ruby winked at her.

"Jealous?"

She rolled her eyes. "Hello? Succubus here, remember? You'll have to do better than that."

Noriko could only hope she was succeeding in keeping the blood away from her face as she gazed speculatively at the young man on the ground. "Is it always like this?"

Instead of letting him respond, Kokoa flung an arm around the younger girl's shoulders like a long lost friend. "Finally! I think we're going to get along great, kohai! Just ignore them; believe me, it's for the best. I'm the only sane one here when it comes to…_him._"

Mizore's ethereal laugh sent chills down their spines. "Keep telling yourself that," she stated bluntly as she sauntered over to where Tsukune still sat, leaving the vampiress stammering behind her.

The blond watched in fascination as the graceful Snow Woman slid down to the young man's ear and softly spoke something as she played with her lollipop perhaps more purposefully than normal. His skin went florescent in short order.

"I see what you mean," she muttered.

Kokoa snorted. "That's nothing."

"He _was_ very impressive when he was fighting those vampires. Strength-wise he'd be a prime candidate to those only looking for the strongest mate for any potential children. I suspect that's been taken however, if Akashiya-senpai's 'blood-mate' claim is any indication. What does that mean, anyway? Vampires have always been secretive; in that way I'm glad I have the chance to go to school with three of you."

The pigtailed teen mumbled something unintelligible.

"Pardon?"

"I said," the junior whispered harshly, checking to make sure the older male was still occupied before she turned back, "that we like the mystique. Plus, any aid in battle is a good thing." She checked again. "Now this isn't from senpai to kohai, this is from Vampire to Youko; _don't_ say blood-mate lightly, especially if Onee-sama is around."

"Might I ask why?"

They nearly jumped ten feet into the air when Moka tapped their shoulders, and even though they couldn't see her, the grin was clear in her tone as she murmured, "Because to any Elder Vampire, my name isn't Akashiya anymore."

_**Or Shuzen,**_ her counterpart added seriously.

From her place just inches away from sitting in her lover's lap, Mizore noticed the man had gone very, very still. Had she been away from present company she would have whined, because his hand had quickly caught on to her guidance and had started running along the porcelain skin under her usual sweatshirt out of the others' view. Needless to say, that had stopped, and she was none too pleased about that, though only those that knew her best would be able to see that. A gentle caress to the bump of her spine just above her skirt's waistband had her eyes instantly to his, and the intensity of emotion in them almost took her breath away.

He motioned for her to stand up and she did so without a second thought, captivated by his smoldering stare. It was enough to tighten her stomach and send the moisture that had abandoned her mouth much lower, and she could tell it had a similar effect on the rest of their family when they were ensnared in its hold. Isao merely looked curious at the sudden silence, while Noriko did the same with the rise of a perfectly maintained eyebrow.

One of his eye-crinkling, embarrassedly apologetic smiles came over him. "Hehe, sorry guys. It was nice talking with you, Myobu-san, and nice meeting you, Nura-san. Tomorrow afternoon meet us in the Newspaper Club's room so we can get the paper done in time for the start of school. That is, if that works with you?" At their dumb nods, he chuckled. "And yes, my tongue still hurts. It's mostly healed though, thank goodness. We've got something to do right now, so we'll see you tomorrow. It'll be a good chance to talk about the Commission too."

"Why the hurry?" the freshman girl asked as she mentally filed away a now confirmed rumor of the legendary vampire. They _did_ heal freakishly fast.

Unaware of her thoughts, Tsukune only laughed nervously. "I actually had a surprise I was going to show my friends after my meeting with the Exorcist. Guess I ended up being the one surprised instead, and it slipped my mind. Rei's been waiting for us, so we should probably get going."

They accepted the explanation and watched as the seven left, though not without noticing the looks they gave each other as they did. Equally apprehensive and yet excited at the same time, it was more than likely they had no idea what he was talking about, but they followed him nonetheless.

Isao shook his head ruefully. "He could have just said they needed to talk about something privately."

Noriko scoffed lightly as she dusted her uniform of some unseen contaminant. "While I'm sure that's part of it, I wouldn't doubt he's telling the truth. I've had a total of one good long conversation with him, and if that guy had to lie to save his life he'd end up dead in a second. He's good at omitting things he doesn't want to talk about though, so I do agree with you." The two stood in relative silence after that, awkwardly wondering what to do. "So…Nura-san?"

He coughed. "Um, Isao's fine. We'll be working together for a while, right?"

"Oh…yeah."

Talking with the Third Year had basically destroyed any preconceptions she had had about the organization she would one day lead, and she had glossed over the fact that if she did reach that position, it would be with the easygoing teen beside her. It could only go well if they were on good terms. She would share the power willingly, learn from those with more experience as best she could, and make a legacy so much greater than her cousin's it would be _his_ name that came up in conversations about _her_.

This went against everything she had been taught as a monster that was revered as a god even in the present day. Power was supposed to be hers for the taking; she was _born_ to be above the rest, finding criticism only in those of her own kind. She had never subscribed to that mindset as wholly as Kuyou, but then again she still wasn't as strong as he had been at her age. That worldview had been turned on its head the moment she stepped into the school. She was strong, more so than a lot of the students, but there was nothing that interested her; standing out in one of the multitude of clubs would be easy, _too_ easy. She wanted what her cousin had had, something that gave his power a purpose. Knowing the police force had been shut down before she even started had definitely dimmed her outlook on high school, but finding out about the Newspaper Club's notoriety was something else.

Then that fateful assembly had been called, and she had been shown power the likes of which even the venerated Youko would fall short of.

Then a true threat to a member of the student body had shown up, and she was shown how that power was _supposed_ to be used.

Suddenly the respect—and fear—the Newspaper Club had didn't seem so unlikely to her, and she could have kicked herself for not joining when she had the chance earlier in the year. Shortly thereafter her dream had come true, but as if that wasn't enough, her regret turned out to be a part of it! In some ways he was exactly what she expected, in others he couldn't have been more different. The same could be said of the group itself.

It was strange, the club didn't act like a club, it was almost like they considered themselves…family.

_That_ was what she wanted to lead. _That_ was the kind of safety commission she wanted to have.

There was plenty of time to figure out the best way to do that, and no better time than the present to start. "Well then, Isao-san, it's only fair for you to call me Noriko."

She found out he had a nice smile, though to her chagrin she also found out it looked every bit as relaxed as he did. Something told her the following years were going to be very trying, and swore to herself right then that if he tried to push off all the managerial nonsense onto her she would fry his sorry butt.

Isao Nura felt nameless dread crawl up his back.

"It was a pleasure meeting you, Isao-san; I'll see you tomorrow."

"Likewise, Noriko-san. Tomorrow," he repeated as he made his way to the boy's dorm.

They knew it was going to be an interesting day.

Nothing with the Newspaper Club could be anything but.

…

That particular motley group of monsters was walking where their soul was leading them, through an all too familiar path, down the corridors and to an imposing door they knew very well. The nervous energy they had been exuding ever since they had left was still there, growing ever larger at his smug silence. The portal to Paradise was opened without preamble, leading them to the realm that, for a few of them, they hadn't been in for months.

"Com'on Tsukune, quit with the suspense! What's the surprise?" their Charm Mistress whined. If the anticipation didn't kill her, the fear would. They had gotten a good shock out of him the evening before, she almost didn't want to see what he could do when given time to retaliate.

His megawatt smile did nothing to make her feel better. "It's not bad, Kurumu, believe me, it's just a surprise. You wouldn't want me to ruin a surprise, would you?"

Their chorus of "Yes!" made him laugh.

"Okay, okay, I'll stop, but there is one last thing I need to do before you see it. Rei should be here any minute to take us there, and yes, I know you two have wings," he directed towards Ruby and Kurumu, "but that last thing I need to do is blindfold you."

Aforementioned witch clapped her hands together in glee. "Ooh! So we can see it from the air?"

"Not when I'm done with you," he replied mock-threateningly.

With those words lingering in their minds, a large shadow fell over them before a giant silver myth dropped from the sky and crowed her greeting happily. Tsukune rubbed her muzzle lovingly and she gladly leaned into his attentions, answering to an unvoiced question and putting herself as low to the ground as possible, silently willing her passengers onboard. It might have been frightening had the chance to ride a supposedly extinct legend not overridden every other instinct they had. How much she had grown over their time together was readily apparent when all seven of them were able to fit, rather effortlessly, on her back.

Tsukune turned back to face them, completely at ease with the situation despite how he was going to be sitting when they took off. It occurred to them it probably wasn't the first time he had done so. "Now I'm going to blindfold you, and Kurumu, since you're so much better at illusions than me, you get to close your eyes too. I'll be watching, so no peeking!"

She started grumbling good-naturedly, then yelped in synch with everyone else when their sight went black. Her first impulse was to fight the illusion blocking her vision, but she forced herself to calm; she knew who had done it, she knew it wasn't meant to be malicious. As the great beast they were on took flight, she chuckled inwardly as her friends cried out when their internal organs were momentarily rearranged. Being one of the two flyers of their family, only they would have any kind of developed resistance to the sudden stress put on their bodies. She would have enjoyed it more had she been able to see the landscape around them, but she comforted herself with the understanding that she would soon find out what Tsukune seemed so proud of.

It was too bad Rei could only take her true form in Paradise and other such places, since wherever they were going they were making good time. In the past when they had needed to get someplace that required flight it was an uphill battle, now it would be nothing; Rei was carrying all of them and she barely even showed a slight strain. More maneuverable than any aircraft, better equipped too, she truly was worthy of the mythological status her race's rarity had earned over the eras. Kurumu looked forward to the aerial acrobatics they would be able to do together. It had been too long since she had last stretched her wings.

Just then she felt the silver dragon gallop to a jarring stop, and one by one Tsukune led them down to solid ground, where Kokoa proved she really did feel nothing for him by professing her undying love for the dirt and proceeding to kiss it. Repeatedly. Rei sniffed pompously and stuck up her nose at the perceived snub to her skills, and her partner sniggered, leaving the others to wonder what was going on.

"It's okay, Rei. It's nothing against you, I'm sure it's just because the blindness made her feel the motions more," they heard him say, then, "Okay everyone, I'm going to let it off slowly so you can get used to the light again."

True to his word, their world started brightening gradually, filling with shapes and colors until it was completely back to normal. They had to blink a few times, mostly because some of them weren't sure they were really seeing Kokoa kissing the ground.

For one person though, she blinked, blinked, then blinked again. Ruby kept blinking as tears streaked her pale skin, as her lips quivered and a sob broke forth, and finally cried in earnest as she fell into Tsukune's arms and clutched him close. Alarmed by the development, they all spun to see what had brought that on.

Yukari, Kurumu, and Moka all strangled gasps as a sea of gold stretched out before them, swaying lightly in the breeze.

Sunflowers. Thousands upon thousands of sunflowers.

"That wonderful, magnificent man," Kurumu breathed softly. Ruby's whole life had been uprooted and she had transplanted herself to Youkai Academy solely because they were there, but a piece of her would always be at the Witch's Ranch, where her first family had been. Somehow, someway, Tsukune had given her a way to have that in a place so close to what had become her new home.

Not wanting to disturb the moment between the vampire and his witch, Kokoa quietly inquired as to the importance of the scenery. While both she and Mizore—those who had come after Ruby's arrival—knew some of her background, they didn't know enough for the field of flowers to be anything but simply beautiful to behold. As they were filled in, the topic had apparently decided right then would be a perfect time to make up the kiss she hadn't been able to give him earlier, and then some.

Tsukune wasn't complaining. One second she had her hands clasped to his back, the next, one had gripped the back of his head and pulled him down to her waiting mouth, where she put her new piercing to good use exploring the inside of his. That was another thing that made her thankful for his strange healing method; she didn't know if she'd be able to go without this for another week.

His first word when she pulled away probably made sense to him, but only to him. If the dazed look was any indication, he certainly appreciated the gesture.

Her smile was positively illuminating, and as she pressed her cheek back to his chest, one word had to be said. "How?"

"Magic," he replied with a matching smile.

And it was, she knew that. The song of Nature was a glorious symphony in Paradise, but the expanse before them all but glowed in its grandeur. "Rei?"

"Turns out I can help her with that whole 'growing' thing she can do. Over the month we did a lot of flying around, looking for different challenges and whatnot, but it wasn't until you came by that I smelled sunflowers again. To me it's one of your defining scents: sunflower seeds roasting in the sun with just a hint of incense. This place has almost become a home to me; when I smelled that I knew I could make this like a home for you too. I don't know how often you get out to visit the ranch, so I thought I would give you a piece of it here."

"…Tsukune?"

"Hm?"

"Are you going to shut up and kiss me or am I gonna have to do it again?"

He grinned mischievously. "Is this one of those questions where I'm supposed to say no?" A shudder went through her, but she glared at him nonetheless. The grin widened. "Just checking."

By the time the others were up to speed, Ruby looked like she was doing everything she could to pull him to the ground and have him take her right there. Tsukune was, at best, halfheartedly resisting, and the sole reason he was even doing that much was because they had company. For Ruby, that more than likely just egged her on. Rei could attest to that.

Kokoa cleared her throat noisily, and the elder witch frowned as she disentangled herself from her vampire's body. "That girl is wound way too tightly," she growled into his ear, and Tsukune quickly stuck his head into the crook of her neck lest he be caught laughing.

He was still fighting it when they were apart and looking expectantly at him, and he came so close to giving in when he saw the fiery redhead was even tapping her foot imperiously. He could just imagine her as one giant spring rattling off energy without an outlet, but eventually managed to douse the urge to laugh in her face. That didn't mean he could stop smiling like an idiot though. "Um…well…surprise!"

In an amazing display of coevality, they all palmed their faces at the same time.

"I think we got that much, Tsukune," Moka observed wryly. "I'm pretty sure we have a good idea why you did it too. It's gorgeous. Is this where you lived while you were here?"

The brown-haired young man looked to his familiar inquisitively, and she responded by letting loose a teeth-rattling roar at the mountain that had birds fleeing for miles. "Sorry about that. She was just giving a warning to the Kamaitachi that live over her cave. Most of the monsters here aren't stupid enough to attack her when she's in her scaly splendor, but that was before. A lot of them are nesting now, and if there's one thing scarier than a pissed off monster in Paradise, it's a pissed of _mother_ monster in Paradise."

Mizore's arctic blue orbs darkened towards him. "It's because of you, isn't it?"

The giant white reptile beside them started a wheeze-like rasp that would surely be considered a laugh anywhere else, and Tsukune glared at her. "Well, _someone_ thought it would be a good idea to go after all the ones left when I found an ability that seemed useful, not counting the ones I hunted just for food. We went a lot of places too to find them, and there's still who knows how many more places to find out there. I don't like causing pain unnecessarily so…you do the math."

She strode up to him, grabbed his shirt's collar, and tugged him into an open-mouthed kiss so fierce when she let him go he breathed out frost. "I swear on the priestess if you so much as _assist_ in another creature getting pregnant before me…" she struggled for a sufficient punishment, until she gave up and chose to go with, "My patience is limited. You do the math."

The sad truth was, that's what it came down to. Math. They all knew her patience wasn't the only thing limited. Her biological clock was ticking, and every day she went without trying her heart hurt. She didn't need to worry about getting bartered off to some unknown, Tsukune and the rest of her family had dealt with that once. If it was tried again, she didn't know what a prospective Dark Lord and a handful of potential Dark Ladies would do in response. It wouldn't be pretty, she knew that much.

With that burden taken away, the greatest joy in a Snow Woman's life could be enjoyed to the fullest, and that was becoming a mother. It was for that reason that if a Snow Woman did go to Youkai Academy instead of being educated amongst their own kind, they usually completed their Third Year curriculum at home so they could focus on that. She was the rarest of exceptions for circumstances already noted, and it was an unspoken agreement between the women that they knew she would be pregnant before the school year was out. She didn't have much margin for error, and he was coming to realize she was being at least partially serious every time she commented on the effects of his bites. He had wanted to wait until after school was over, but it was becoming clearer that he may have to settle on just the birth itself being outside, not necessarily the conception.

That in mind, he appeased her growing agitation with another kiss, initiated by him this time. She needed to know, and he needed to make her. Deepening the intimate embrace, he tapped into the living winter she had given him, allowed it to dominance, and felt it change him accordingly. Even Kokoa fidgeted when she saw Mizore's knees shake as an absolute cold so similar to hers took hold of her, mingled in their tangled tongues and provoked her own transformation. As a Youkai who had to make sure her disguise's temperature was regulated with her ever-present candy, delving into a source of her glacial existence from another was intoxicating.

Her eyes were sparkling when they separated, any irritation forgotten. "I suppose I can wait a little longer."

He laughed as he led them to where he had lived for the past month, one half of the Black and White Duet under each arm. Moka couldn't begrudge them that, in fact she felt warmth at the closeness of her family, and yet there was also a part of her deep inside that resonated with heat not hers, love from another source. It was strange, yet beyond that it felt incredible, and even Inner Moka could sense some kind of change in herself. She knew she loved her new Clan, her family, but this love felt so intimate it was almost like…

A huge grin broke out on her face. So it was true after all. That certainly made things more interesting.

They took to Rei's cave with a good amount of enthusiasm, considering how sparse it was decorated so far. The pool had gained some weird looks, but after it was explained they had to admit it seemed like fun. Moka and Kokoa in particular were eyeing the large body of water hungrily, and no one could blame them when they realized that was one thing they had never done before. There wasn't even a table in the place, but they were all looking forward to designing the blank slate in front of them.

While Rei was changing back into her clothes, Tsukune sat down on top of his unrolled blanket, suddenly pensive. As they joined him, still chatting amongst themselves, Moka met her blood-mate's soulful brown gaze and just like earlier, her heart leapt into her throat. That place inside her that she had felt sing with power unknown, that had intensified a love already within her, now burned again with that warmth, directed solely at her this time. She could feel it.

He had heard her.

"The other reason I brought you here is because I wanted to be as far away from everything else as I could." Those eyes she had fallen in love with bored into her. "Moka…_did you mean it?_" The words were almost desperate, like he wanted—_needed_—to believe what his blood had been telling him ever since he heard that wonderful sentence spill from her mouth.

When she nodded, his grin could have split his face.

Kokoa merely rubbed her face in exasperation. She wasn't stupid. "When Onee-sama calls something family, she means it, idiot. A mate is like a husband, but to a vampire a _blood-mate_ is their perfect match, the father or mother of their children."

Every set of eyes turned to Moka, who looked at the floor in sorrow. "Haven't you ever wondered why we don't rule the world, if Vampires are immortal?" she proposed quietly, and slowly, the other girls nodded their heads. "It's because we aren't made to reproduce."

Everyone, even Tsukune, sucked in a harsh breath at that.

"But…but you have sisters," Kurumu pointed out.

"I didn't say we couldn't," she sighed. "But my sisters are all from different mothers. Only Kahlua-neesan and Kokoa are from the same mother, and you have to understand how rare that is. Mate is a title, basically showing their loyalty to that person, but it takes someone strong to have a child using only that, which is why my _sire_," she pointedly avoided calling him father, "was able to get his lover of the time pregnant."

Yukari nodded slowly. "Okay, I can get that. A strong mate can only help the would-be offspring, but that's still only half the equation!"

Moka smirked sadly. "And that's the catch. What does a Vampire do?"

"Um…suck blood?"

"And what happens when we don't?"

"You get weak," Mizore stated, then her expressionless visage morphed in horror. "Sometimes so weak you faint…"

"Sometimes so weak we can't even support ourselves, let alone another body growing inside us," Kokoa whispered. "We usually take strong mates to help conception at the very least, which is hard by itself, but after that we're sharing our constantly-weakening body with something sapping that strength to develop. Let's face it, we need blood to live, but to give birth we need a lot more of it. With the creation of blood-banks it got easier, but a Vampiress puts herself at risk too. Kahlua-neesan and I are pretty close together in years, and that's _rare_, I mean _really_ rare. I think it's partly because Mom didn't want to be seen as less than Onee-chan's mom." Left unsaid was why. "Those brothers we fought, they may look close in age, but I'd be willing to bet there's at least twenty years between them, if not more."

Tsukune looked like he was going to be sick, and Moka quickly took one of his hands into hers with a reassuring smile. "But there is another way to make it less difficult. Instead of a mate, you make that vow for life. You tie yourself to your mate in the deepest way possible. If you do that, compatibility will never be a problem, _ever_, only the need to keep your strength up during the pregnancy."

"And we did that?" he plead hopefully.

Just knowing he wanted to make sure he could have children with her that badly made her squirm happily. "We did. I didn't mean for us to do it so early, but it was a good thing we did. It got our point across to Alexander well enough, and it'll do the same to anyone else that tries."

"You make it seem like you have to _do_ something before it's true. Do you?" a confused Ruby asked.

Both Kokoa and Moka went red, and the pinkette coughed into her fist. "Um, uh…you see…it's a ritual, a blood-magic ritual. Blood-magic is powerful, but limited, and Vampires use it most effectively because our blood is our everything."

"Yeah, I remember Vincent telling us about it. _And?_"

She cast a beseeching look at Tsukune, and he did what he knew she wanted—remove her rosary. The process was as awe-inspiring as always, and Inner Moka chuckled sensuously when she reclaimed her body. _**"Well, I deserve this after all the teasing I did today."**_ She made herself comfortable on the blanket, shamelessly flaunting her figure in her stretch as she settled by her deliriously happy sister, though those watching were inclined to believe it was a show to draw attention away from the flush crawling up her neck. _**"It's a fairly simple ritual when you think about what it does. The intended pair join their bodies and throughout the act exchange blood, so much blood it would normally be dangerous. They form a connection so intimate their bodies will know each other on an instinctive level. The advantage of that when trying for children should be obvious."**_

Kurumu roared with laughter. "'Join their bodies'? It's a sex ritual!"

The thing about such pale skin was, it lit up like a firework when blood rushed to it. Before the illusionist had time to take joy in the minor victory, she found herself nursing a giant bump on her head under Moka's trademark tagline, _**"Know your place."**_

As much as she enjoyed the images, both mental and the one in front of her, Yukari frowned thoughtfully. "You just told us how important it can be, so why did the Valentines compare it to a Familiar bond? Wouldn't they know better?"

The noble vampiress rolled her eyes disdainfully. _**"Probably because they thought Tsukune was a Snow Man. It doesn't work the same if only one is a vampire, mostly because of the amount of blood needed to be swapped. Monsters may fancy themselves bloodthirsty but few can drink the required amount straight, and more than once at that. They don't gain sustenance from blood, so losing that much and drinking it back does nothing for them. It's only been successfully recorded a small number of times in all our history, and even then it wasn't with the same potency as between two vampires. In our case I'd go so far as to imagine our bond will be stronger than most."**_

"I never thought of that," Kokoa admitted. "He's who he is because you gave him your blood, and he's been giving you his to drink for years. I can see you two taking that kind of thing into a blood-bond having an effect. What, I don't know."

Inexplicably, Tsukune started shifting around as he rubbed his chest. He felt…strange. He knew love, he had felt love, he gave his love freely, but for a second, he had literally _felt_ someone else _love_ him. It was weak, just barely there in some part of his being, but it was the single most humbling thing he had ever experienced.

"…Moka…?" When she graced him with a gentle smile, he gulped. "Wow."

_**"It seems to be maturing, slowly but surely. Just this morning I felt something neither mine nor Omote's for the first time, and it seems that if I concentrate hard enough I can make Tsukune feel the same."**_

He grimaced. "I must be more sensitive then." At their obvious bewilderment, he grit his teeth in pain. "When Alexander came the first time, I felt _dead_ trees scream out your cry and I knew, I just _knew_ somewhere inside me that you needed me. More than the tone of your voice I simply _felt_ your fear. When they came the second time there was no way I was hearing anything other than my own blood pounding in my ears though, so that's no surprise. This connection won't do us much good if it doesn't get strong enough to be heard over our normal emotions, but it's better than nothing."

"That's so cool ~desu!" Yukari eventually cried. "Why don't more vampires do it?"

Inner Moka shook her head in contempt. _**"It's for life; they can never do it again. For an immortal, forever can be a long time."**_

"Unless you know," Mizore stated airily, already firm in her decision.

_**"Unless you know. I know."**_

That statement was repeated by everyone but Kokoa and Rei, though the latter _did_ do it mentally.

_**"Shall we make it official?" **_Going from Kokoa's gasp, that meant something more than they knew. Naturally, they asked what she meant, each in their own way. The elder sister gave her sibling a sympathetic look, but carried on. _**"I've accepted a blood-bond and declared to belong to a new Clan. By all rights in the eyes of the Elders, Tsukune and I are husband and wife, leaders in every meaning of our own Clan. On that same vein, we can adopt people into it. To another vampire, it's like a mark of protection; if they mess with them, they'll bring down the wrath of that Clan. You really will become part of our family. I should have offered you this when we made that vow after Alexander's defeat, but I was…I was out of sorts, if you remember." **_

Like they would ever forget, not that night.

"I want to make one thing clear," Kokoa hissed with very real malice, her eyes hidden behind a veil of red hair, "this isn't something to take lightly. If you do this, it'll mean to a vampire, you're not a Snow Woman, or a Witch, or a Succubus. Another vampire has _adopted_ you into their Clan; it would be like attacking that vampire's _sister_. Servants have worked their whole _lives_ away trying to gain that status. _Generations_ of servants have worked their whole lives away trying to gain that status!"

Even as they gulped, what was aggravating the younger vampiress became obvious. _She_ was Moka's sister, the only one she had an actual working relationship with for that matter. For that to be infringed upon evidently didn't sit right with her, and they certainly couldn't hold it against her.

"You…you'd do that for us?" Kurumu rasped hoarsely, a sentiment that was shared by all involved.

_**"'Til death do us part, wasn't it?"**_ was said as her answer, and as the significance sunk in, their jaws set in determination. They were family, markings of any kind didn't matter, but if it gave them an edge, any edge at all, be it legal or unwritten, they were going to take it and bear it proudly. Moka saw this in each set of eyes she looked into, and like before she felt the burning of love not platonic in the least throb from a place in her heart that she was quickly coming to enjoy. That alone was enough for her to know Tsukune was seeing the same things she was.

Maybe this was why so many younger vampires were warned against even _thinking_ of choosing a blood-mate frivolously. Vampires were prideful creatures, low in number, but seemingly invincible on the battlefield. Their weaknesses were only whispered, for if one thought to use those against them they _had_ to make sure they were _dead_ by the end, otherwise the vampire would take that defeat and shove it down their throat before they removed their head from it. To _feel_ someone on the level she felt, to _know_ he could feel her too, that she could never hide from him...of course it could be interpreted as a weakness, and if there was one thing a vampire hated, it was being reminded they had weaknesses. Love had to be there for that to work, else they kill each other to be rid of it.

The others would be targets either way, at least with this they had grounds for lethal response. Monsters may be forbidden from interfering in the physical affairs of humanity, but when it came to inter-Youkai dealings there were some things that were a given. For Vampires, a _human_ could bear that mark and if something happened to them, the Clan concerned _had_ to be allowed to protect them in any way necessary. That would prove invaluable, and she knew it.

"Hell, for you guys it might as well be a marriage ceremony," her younger sister muttered mutinously.

If there had been any hesitation in them whatsoever, there wasn't any more.

Moka cupped Kokoa's face with both hands and forced her to look right at her. _**"Kokoa, you will always be my sister. Always. I can't ask this of you; I **_**won't**_**. The status and prestige you have right now is a godsend, even if you've been mocked before. Keep it for as long as you can. You'll be my sister no matter what, let's wait and see if this is really necessary for you before we do it."**_

The redhead sighed deeply and let herself take comfort in the hold of her role-model. "Damn you and your logic."

They shared a laugh, but it was Rei who asked the critical question, speaking up for the first time since she had returned to her human body. "What are the requirements for this to be done?"

_**"It's another blood ritual. A bleeding cut is presented to the adopter, who then adds their own blood and marks a chosen area as the oath is exchanged. The mark of blood will take a distinctive shape if the magic is recognized. The magic in that mark is what another vampire will pick up on, even if the mark itself is out of sight."**_

In seconds Mizore had formed a kunai and sliced open the palm of her right hand, stoically letting the life-giving substance pool in her hand as she held it out towards her two vampires. Moka was rendered momentarily speechless at the act, that and the appetizing smell now permeating the air. Knowing she had to take the lead since Tsukune had no idea what to do, she solemnly cut her own hand with her fangs and gestured for Mizore to pour hers into the other. After that was done she told Tsukune to do as she had, and soon she had all the ingredients needed. Dipping her fingers into the collected blood, she asked, _**"Where?"**_

And with all seriousness, the Snow Woman pointed to the ring finger of her left hand.

Moka felt Tsukune's hand press next to hers, joining the Clan leaders in one motion as she directed them where indicated. A few simple words that vocalized the as of yet only hinted destruction of the Akashiya name and consent from their friend finalized the impromptu ceremony, where the wet blood flashed black. What was revealed was a tangled ring of black vines that struck a disturbing resemblance to Tsukune's as a Ghoul, but a ring nonetheless. Mizore's smile when she saw that was absolutely spectacular.

The sole male among them healed the insignificant wounds and drank the remaining blood to continue, which was a good thing since Kurumu was nearly vibrating with excitement. Once the process was repeated, sure enough she chose the same spot, and did a little happy dance when she sported an identical band on her finger. At Ruby's turn, she blushed brightly and tugged the choker of her shirt down, to soon bear one of a different kind. Yukari only showed the slightest hesitation before cutting her hand as she had seen the rest of her family do; a tribute to the adolescent's strength.

Tsukune wasn't about to let this one go silently however. "Yukari," he said softly, and her back went rigid at the steel hidden in his tone. Fear of rejection welled up inside her, yet when she looked at him his eyes were dark with worry and he was right beside her, so close his scent was easy for even her human nose to pick up. She felt like she could drown just in the presence he put around her, but she commanded herself to meet his gaze. His gentle smile melted her heart. "Yukari, you're thirteen, I want you to know that you have a choice no matter what. This is a promise I would make to you either way, but this isn't a trap you can't escape from; this is something to show you that your family will always back you up. If you…if you meet someone down the line, like when you go to get your degree, I just…I don't…"

For a thirteen year old witch, her slap was every bit as devastating as from one twice her age. The splotch normally associated with the aftereffects was especially gruesome coupled with the blood that had been on the hand delivering it, but it was the look on his face that really set the scene.

"Okay, first: OW! Second: mmh," he hummed with a grin as he shook off his shock and stretched his tongue out to taste the scarlet smear dripping down his cheek. Moka merely clucked disapprovingly before demonstrating her ability to clean it better, and the petite girl watched in wonder as he shivered when the vampiress licked a swath spotless.

_**"Hm, it's not Tsukune's, but very well balanced. Tasty."**_

Every piece of exposed skin on Yukari turned a deep crimson, but nevertheless she held out the hand that was again holding a puddle of her lifeblood.

Tsukune sighed. "You get what I was trying to say, right?"

She nodded briskly. "You were trying to tell me that you would support me even if I happened to fall in love with someone that _didn't_ save my life; that _didn't_ laugh and fight and nearly die beside me; that _wasn't_ everything I had ever dreamed of, and _couldn't_ understand why my parents are only a small part of a much larger family that I would lay down my life for at a moment's notice. I don't just love you, Tsukune," she declared sincerely, her dark violet irises shining with maturity beyond her years. Her favorite linguistic copula had been abandoned completely; she wanted this to be remembered as the words of the woman she would become, not the young teen she currently was. Prejudice had forced her childhood mindset to an early death and her genius had further destroyed it. She knew what she was doing. "I loved Moka at first sight; I love Ruby, and Mizore, Rei and Kokoa, and yes, even you, Kurumu. You're friends, sisters, soul-mates, maybe even lovers when the time comes. How could I ever love someone else the same way I love you?" No one was able to answer her. When she was sure they understood, she gave a toothy smile. "Besides, you aren't getting rid of me until I get my threesome ~desu!"

While the group as a whole groaned, Tsukune and Moka traded a nervous look.

The ritual resumed without much fuss, and this time there were no interruptions, not even when she chose the same spot as the Black and White Duet. Just like that they were done, leaving everyone to examine their new art as they talked about what to do next. When Rei had asked if she needed one, Moka had said that as a Familiar she was already a part of their family, since she had taken Tsukune's blood in the finalization of their bond in the first place.

They had cemented themselves together in their hearts, now it was such that even other vampires would have to acknowledge it. They were as ready as they could be, but with that only one thing was left weighing on their minds.

"So what are we going to do about the Commission?" Mizore asked.

_**"I see only one thing we **_**can**_** do,**_" Moka replied. _**"We could always leave them unprepared for what's to come, but I know that's not an option in our position. If we tried to do everything they wouldn't be able to handle next year, and Kokoa still needs to finish school. So we do what the headmaster wants: we train them."**_

Kurumu pondered the preposition as she tapped a finger on her chin. "Okay, that would work. We take those little leader wannabes and make them into real contenders so we don't have to worry about the rest of the school while we're dealing with whatever happens next. If I didn't know any better I'd swear the Exorcist made up that whole 'junior leader' position just to force us to…" The dull looks she received from Moka and Kokoa made her stop in embarrassment.

"Of course he did. No one would take the new Commission seriously if it wasn't headed by these two," the youngest vampire present stated plainly as she thumbed towards her older equivalents. "The whole _school_ has seen what they can do, and more than that, they know them. The other two will gain status simply by being associated with them, and _that_ will pass over to the rest of their years here. Even if we don't do anything extra with them, just the fact that they were with us will give them rep. We've been painted into a corner. In this case it definitely isn't a bad thing; we've been given some of the strongest students in the school and basically told they're ours for the rest of the year. We need all the help we can get even if it's just on crowd control."

"And still do what the Commission needs to," the Snow Woman added.

"So checking all the clubs and following up on the rules," Ruby supplied helpfully.

Tsukune laughed. "And if anyone claims we're playing favorites, we quit!"

_**"If the headmaster lets us. He does have a few favors to call in."**_

That laugh turned into a groan. "Don't remind me."

"So we train them?" the succubus checked.

In the end, it was unanimous.

Luckily no one but Moka could know her thoughts, because they wouldn't like them. They would train them, but that didn't mean _she_ would. She was going to make sure Noriko didn't become another Kuyou. Tsukune may be able to look past the family resemblance, but she knew firsthand how hard it was to get past ingrained behaviors. It would be hard, and she would be watching every step of the way.

Their hell started tomorrow.

…

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	23. Flying High

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Rosario+Vampire, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story. Simple enough, ne? Just don't copy from this story and we're all good!

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**Author's Notes:** Well…um…I'm sorry? Finally I decided to just cut the chapter again, after way, way too long. Most of the reason I decided to put the A/N up here again is because of a couple of reviews I got last time that I couldn't respond to. It'll just take a quick paragraph to explain, don't worry.

To the reviewer calling themselves Logan and the person that agreed with him after the fact: I would have kept the review up, had it really contained much. Let's face it, we fanwriters write for fun and no profit, so really the only payment we get is in the vindication we receive for seeing a person enjoying our work. I _love_ constructive criticism, in fact GrrDraxin and recently, GeneralYao, have given me some of the most constructive and encouraging reviews I've ever had. Constructive criticism is a balancing act, in that it's both criticism and _constructive_. All you, Logan, did in your review was rag on Yukari's ~desu. When I looked it over, I realized that yeah, I had done as you said. Depending on the scanlator doing the work, Yukari either has or doesn't have her ~desu in her sentences, so I decided from now on to do it more when she's excited or scared and not so much during her regular speech. I went back and I changed it in case you didn't notice. But really, what else did the review offer? Did it say anything positive that would make me as the writer, smile? Quicken my resolve? Not really. I took what was necessary from it and I made the appropriate changes because let's be honest, I'm not perfect (duh), but it wasn't going to make me think as I'm going over the next chapter, nor would it brighten my outlook when I'm feeling particularly stuck in an area and needed a little boost. I allow unsigned reviews because they're basically the same as PM's only without the account. It's my choice to allow them, and my choice to keep them. It's nothing personal.

And a quick note to GeneralYao, and maybe the rest of you that might be thinking or have thought along the same lines: yes, I know I'm walking a fine line in regards to Tsukune and the dreaded GS. A…*shudder*…Gary Stu. Rei was an addition I wanted to do that, as I hope to continue doing, should more be thought of as an addition to the group itself rather than just a new tagalong for Tsukune. I could just as easily have given her to Moka or one of the others, or not tagged her as a Familiar at all and still added her. I wanted a new dynamic and a way to ingratiate her smoothly, which since most people seem to like her, I seem to have done…at least not terribly.

I'm glad you're seeing as you read on that I build into things, and where an explanation might not be immediate, it will happen and further develop the story. I hope everyone keeps that in mind.

Of course, there's the compulsory THANK YOU FOR THE REVIEWS! It's so nice to know I've still got readers, and I'm so sorry I took so long yet again. I've been trying and trying to finish up the next chapter, but when I got to thirty-three pages I decided I'd just find a place and cut it again. So with sixteen pages already written you can count on the next wait not being nearly as long.

To summarize: you're getting dessert first. The meat and potatoes come in the next one.

…It's a good thing I'm not a parent yet, huh?

What that means is that while there is depth here, some of this chapter is **lemon.** You have been **warned.** The next one really advances more, as sorry as I am to say that because again, I wanted it to be in this one. It was just getting too long.

Thank you so much to all the people that keep added my stuff to their favorites! And in advance, thanks for the reviews!

.

**Flying High…**

**.**

Inner Moka sat quietly against the trunk of a tree outside what had been deemed _their_ cave in Paradise, staring up into the blue sky. Over in the field next to her, Ruby was taking the time to show Yukari the various workings of sunflowers while they studied the possible effects of being grown so quickly, and the vampiress noted how carefree and happy the two looked at such a simple pleasure. Kurumu had convinced Tsukune earlier on that she needed to teach him how to fly with his new wings, and just watching him learn how to flap them correctly was enough to make her laugh. This was all done with his shirt off of course, else he rip it to shreds with his impressive wingspan. Kurumu may be able to make hers split cleanly through the back, but he didn't want to wreck his shirt _any_ if he could help it. Not like they were complaining about his solution. She had contented herself with being a spectator in the proceedings, as he tried and repeatedly failed to lift off. That she could see his chest muscles bulge and ripple as he did so perfectly from where she was had nothing to do with her location. Now he, Kurumu, and Rei were but specks in the sky as they weaved around each other, as they had for the past hour, and she could practically feel his confidence growing as his maneuvers became increasingly daring.

Kokoa was napping with her head in her lap, and Moka wasn't going to say anything against it. The shade _was_ rather inviting, and after what they had done, or more specifically after what she had been _unable_ to do, the reassurance was comforting to the younger vampiress. Just last year Moka might not have allowed her to do such, but she had since learned, and in fact was still learning the incredible value of family. Letting herself be seen doing something like being a pillow to another was fine around those she…cared for. Last she knew, Mizore was sitting right above her on one of the branches doing exactly what she was, surveying the sky, and the peace of the moment between family made her close her eyes and thank whoever heard her first and only prayer those months ago. This didn't go unnoticed, but then again she often wondered how much actually escaped the gaze of her Snow Woman companion.

"What're you thinking about?" Mizore asked softly.

She sighed. There were so many ways to answer that question, and were she her old self she never would have considered responding truthfully, or at least with the whole truth. In this case what she was thinking about directly related to the quality of that answer. _**"I was just…looking at us. Look how peaceful this is."**_ The ice maiden hummed her reply, and Moka lowered her eyes sadly. _**"…And I can't believe I made every effort to throw it away."**_

Even from below, she knew her friend's pale blue eyes were on her with the intensity of a hawk, but she also didn't disagree with her. "You're such a tsundere, you know that?" she stated casually, just before the silence became uncomfortable. It was said with such perfect precision that Moka couldn't even find it in herself to be indignant, instead she wanted to hear the explanation for it. Mizore heaved a sigh of disappointment. "Moka, we've been together morning, noon, and night every day for the entire month. That's pushing even our usual standard. As much as we're typically together over a year, how often have we actually talked? We were either doing something, going somewhere, or fighting over Tsukune. I missed him terribly, all of us did, but with him gone we really…connected. We talked, we played, we fought, and do you think over all that time that we wouldn't come to understand each other better? You and Outer knew other vampires might come, and the more she explained the life that was expected of you, or a Vampire in general, I got to see more behind who you are. You were so scared of what he meant to you, scared of losing the only other thing you had been taught and held on to for so long that you didn't know what to do. Keep it, or give it up for the _better_ option he gave you, and in your fear you made your choice."

_**"My pride,"**_ she whispered bitterly. Another hum told her that was exactly what the other woman was talking about.

"You did everything you could think of that could salvage it and still get what you wanted, but in the end you had to give it up to him first anyway. I'm sure that fight was the most difficult thing you've ever done in your life, and I don't mean the actual fight you two had. You changed, Moka. From that day on you were different. You fought tooth and nail to keep that pride of yours, but when you let him in you showed how much of a woman you really are. Then you let us in too, and I'll tell you right now I think more of you now than I ever did in first or second year. When you allowed yourself to give it up, you earned pride more than any Vampire's; you gained _our_ pride. Behind that hard exterior of yours, you're nothing but a big softy."

For the second time that day, Inner Moka's skin glowed red. _**"Aren't you chatty today,"**_ she grumbled.

"You could say I'm a lot like you," the violet-haired teen replied simply in her usual gentle, clipped tone. "I'd rather observe than be noticed, but here I can talk and know everyone around me will accept my opinions whatever they might be. For you, I can show a part of myself no one else will see."

Any animosity slipped away despite her protests, and she could only chuckle lowly. _**"You're as annoyingly insightful as Ruby."**_

Mizore gave an amused '_hn_' back, before she startled the vampiress by saying, "That's not the only thing bothering you. It's part of it, I can tell, but there's more."

She scowled up at the branch the Snow Woman was sitting on. _**"As I said: annoyingly insightful. I was getting to that."**_ Exhaling slowly, she turned back to the sky, where her paramour still frolicked. Why was this so hard? _**"Today I did something nearly as rare as choosing a blood-mate: I adopted **_**four**_** monsters into my Clan. And why? Because I can't fathom my family without you. I love Tsukune with all my heart, and now I can…I can **_**feel**_** his love for me. How much he loves me…I'm not certain I'm even getting all of it with how weak our bond it right now and it kills me that I tried to push him away. When he looks at you and the others, I can feel it there too. When he says 'I love you', he means it with every breath in his body. You all mean a lot to Omote and I…and now whenever I look at you…"**_

"You wonder if you love us like Tsukune." Flushed crimson, Moka nodded abashedly. Rather than answer her verbally, the blue-eyed beauty relaxed back into the tree, watching her loved ones fly above. "Did you know Kurumu was there with me and Tsukune?"

The silver-haired woman laughed. _**"Yes, I suspected as much."**_

"We talked about it quite a bit beforehand, you know. We just wanted him to do something, and we figured both of us teasing him would be more effective than just one. Then she told me that she was sure her meeting Tsukune wasn't the only meeting in her life that was destined to be. She told me she would never think of me as a 'backup lover' if it did come to that, since she would always consider me a _real_ lover. At first it was hard for me to come to grips with, but you know, then I realized she was right. When we went with Tsukune it wasn't as two women wanting a cheap thrill by being with the same man, it was as three lovers, and we _made love_."

_**"And that didn't bother you at all?"**_

Mizore would have shrugged had her friend been able to see her. "Nope," she countered concisely. "I have a question for you: can you see her?"

With Rei being the most identifiable of the flyers, the smallest one was easy to spot too, though not with any detail. _**"Barely."**_

"That's a good answer, because I wasn't talking about seeing her right here. What is she?"

_**"Do you really need me to tell you?"**_

The Snow Woman rolled her eyes. "It was a rhetorical question. We all know she's a Succubus, but do you know what that means? She's a Youkai born for _intimacy_, not just for lust, but for contact; _love_. My first kiss was stolen by a man I didn't know and would never love, and like so many of my race I was expected to have a _child_ with him. I would sooner die, and I showed you that. She caught me though, then she kissed me too. She showed me a kiss by someone you cared about wasn't a bad thing; she cleansed me. Against him I couldn't do anything…he was too strong…he touched me even though I didn't want him to. With Tsukune it was the exact opposite. I _knew_ he was strong, yet he touched me like I could break under his fingers. I _wanted_ him to touch me, and he did only because he knew that. She was right there and I never felt like a third wheel, I was part of it."

She sighed deeply, letting the better memories overpower the bad ones she had dredged up to make her point. "You don't know what a Succubus is until you see them be what they were meant to be. I knew how much she was holding herself back and I went in to love her as much as I would Tsukune. No disguises, no barriers, surrounded by the love we gave her and giving it just as completely…she was beautiful. I can say this now because just like she loves me, I know I love her. Tsukune is the only man I want to be with and the only person I want to father my children. If I couldn't have him, I don't think I would go back to the Snow Village and let myself be soiled for the 'greater good' of my kind. Like Yukari said, no one can compare to what we've fought to make for ourselves. We call each other names, but if Kurumu wouldn't have me either than I'd probably just hide, live out the rest of my life as the Snow Women of old were said to have, alone in a mountain somewhere. I wouldn't call myself bisexual, more like for certain people it just wouldn't matter to me."

Moka swallowed heavily. _**"I…you've all done more for me than I could ever repay. You held Tsukune together when I came so close to breaking him, and you forgave me even when you had every right to want me dead. I know Tsukune loves me, but before we fought he told me straight up that he loves each one of you too. I couldn't argue with that even then when I was still trying to preserve my pride. I **_**knew**_** he loved you and I knew he had every right to, and then my only fear was I wouldn't be one of you when he showed you that. I was stupid, I was arrogant, I was nothing but a flat out bitch, and I promise you if it takes me the rest of my life I **_**will**_** make it up to him…and all of you."**_

Tinkling laughter, like chimes of ice, sprinkled from Mizore. "You'll be able to say it eventually. I love you too."

…

Up in the air, Tsukune almost fell out of the sky when a myriad of emotions not his own rocked through him. There were too many to identify individually, and no one feeling stood above the rest in the combined confusion to make it any easier to tell what had affected her so. Before he had time to dwell on that, rushing through like a soothing wind that tangle of confliction was scattered and left only those which he knew all too well. There was relief, there was happiness…there was love. The last was the weakest, the most perplexed, but in it there was what he could only describe as hope, and in that hope he found himself smiling. He had no idea why he was smiling, but it felt right.

Of course, it was only then that he noticed in his sudden contemplation he had stopped flapping his wings, and the ground was a lot closer than he remembered it being a few seconds ago. He was eerily reminded of what his beloved succubus had done to help him fly at the beginning of their impromptu 'lesson'. As he stretched the wings wrought from borrowed blood, he whooped with glee as they filled the air and propelled him up in a controlled arc that cut through the wind like an arrow, so smooth compared to his prior attempts in the hour. Which, again, brought him back to how he had been 'taught' to fly.

It had started out so nicely too. He had been walked through the motions while still on the ground, discerning what was what about the aerial additions and how to control them. That hadn't been so bad, in fact it was downright enjoyable, especially with the way the rest of his family had been looking at him. Things had gone south quickly from there. Kurumu had stated flying was something only learned through experience, and she had done all she could by helping him figure out how to flap properly. She had then conned him into a ride on Rei to better understand what he was going to do, and when he said he didn't get the point of the exercise…the nut had pushed him off!

For a moment, just a moment, he had panicked. What self-respecting man wouldn't? He was falling! It hadn't taken long for him to remember a similar time, when it had only been he and his Familiar in Paradise. He had people that would catch him; they wouldn't let him fall for long. Calmed, his brain inputted the sensation of wind against body parts, parts no regular man would have, parts he had specifically for this purpose. The strain on his muscles was incredible when his membranous wings had flared open, tense almost to the point of snapping, but then he was flying. Flying! He had been flying with Rei, naturally, and he enjoyed it immensely, but nothing could compare to flying under his own power. Kurumu had been glared at but she clearly didn't care, as both she and Rei had been too busy laughing at the look to be intimidated by it.

That was then; now they had been flying together for the past hour, and while Tsukune was getting progressively more comfortable in the sky, it would be a long time before he was to their level. As it was, he was doing well for a novice, but the stark reality was merely thinking about something different had stopped his wings from flapping, and that meant he was still far too green. When they weren't swooping or sailing to preserve their energy, Rei and Kurumu could hover like it was second nature, treading air with their wings like a swimmer would tread water. They didn't need to think consciously about doing it, they just did. On the other hand, _he_ definitely needed more practice.

It was yet another skill he could add to the ever-expanding list of things that would be beneficial for him to learn. While useless in the human world since he would have to be disguised at all times, during battle with fellow Youkai it could be priceless. Flight was exceedingly uncommon among monsters, and for every one that did have the ability, there were far more without. Just being able to at all was a boon, mastering it would be a blessing even if he didn't know all the scenarios where it would come in handy.

Kurumu was delighted to have company up with her that didn't require her to carry them, and showed that with every movement she did. In a show of her prowess she startled him with a peck to his lips in the middle of the tight loop she was performing around him, sailing easily between the beats of his wings. As he straightened to try and find her she shot up from below, crushing him into a loving hug and sealing her lips much more securely over his. He openly moaned into her mouth as she demonstrated yet another thing she was significantly better than him at. Her kiss was hungry and forceful, deeply probing and positively mind-blowing. How she gained _half_ the expertise she used so easily despite having very little practice—that he knew of anyway—never failed to baffle him, but he wasn't about to complain as long as she kept teaching him. It was the one thing definitely learned best through experience, and he would hit anyone who dared claim otherwise.

How he was still in the sky after that he had no idea, but if it proved to be a way to keep his mind occupied _and_ his wings working, he had just found his favorite way to hone that particular skill. There was only one way to find out, so with a smirk on his face he tugged his pleasantly surprised succubus back to him and put her lessons to work. A shiver shot from the tips of his toes to his hairline when he felt thin fingers run over one of his now pointed ears, and just like that she was able to deepen the kiss and gain control. Not just tongues tangled in their embrace, with their forms tails were able to as well, and the sensory overload was more than enough to make his pants feel uncomfortably tight. Conscious thought left him at that time, and eager for further contact, he grabbed the firm swell of her rear and pulled her flush to him. At her ensuing moan he retook dominance, and her nails dug into his sides as she readily accepted his advances and ground herself into the bulge she was so pleasurably pressed against.

Some part of his mind not completely overridden with lust figured that if he didn't fall out of the sky after _that_, then he may have just beaten his previous problem in record time. An eye cracked open just to make sure that they were, in fact, still above the ground, and to his relief he found that yes, they were. Further testing would be required to make sure, so he promptly went back to the woman rubbing herself suggestively into him, but by then he had just as impatiently started rubbing back. He could smell her arousal growing, heady and thick to his sensitive nose, and he wanted nothing more than to embed himself inside her and make her scream her delight to the upper atmosphere.

They both groaned when a large shadow temporarily darkened the sun and reminded them they weren't alone.

"I thought she had grown out of this phase," Kurumu bemoaned as she lightly smacked her head into her love's scarred chest.

"We did ask for it," Tsukune admitted awkwardly. "We shouldn't have started when we knew we weren't alone."

"At least when they aren't people we can ask to join in," the succubus grumbled.

The young vampire could try all he wanted to not think about the things those words conjured, but that effort was over before it even started. That was only added to the desire she had flooded into his system, but he could control himself. He had done it before, he could do it again. Nonetheless, leaning over to her ear he whispered, "Maybe later. This time I want it to be about you and _only_ you."

She flushed scarlet as fresh heat gathered in her core, and once again she cursed a certain interrupting reptile. "That pool of yours wouldn't happen to be cold, would it?" Why she was asking that couldn't be more clear to the other teen.

"Try being in my shoes. I can't shower, making a cold bath may be easy for me but it just isn't worth it, since to top it all off cold has just about stopped bothering me altogether! Heck, I could probably go for a walk with Mizore in a blizzard in only shorts and a t-shirt! Doesn't do much for me anymore I'm afraid."

"Aww, poor baby," she cooed. "It's too bad you don't have a succubus around to help take the edge o…oh wait…"

He glared playfully at her. "Yeah, it's too bad I have a succubus _giving _me that edge in the first place, and where it's impossible to take any of it off too." His whole body shuddered when she unashamedly groped him through his pants.

"You know I'll make it up to you though, right, _Tsuku~ne?_" she sang heatedly, and licked her swollen lips when she saw his fangs extend. She knew the allure of a succubus was more than just mystical, it was and always would be physical in every sense of the word. She was becoming increasingly aware of her heritage with every passing day, ever since she had given herself wholly to her destined one, but her sexual nature would forever be only for a select few. Flaunting it was perfectly acceptable to her, she was proud of who she was, but a look was all everyone else would ever get. The effect he had on her was just too instinctive to ignore; her body ached for him and it made sure he knew that.

As if responding to her thoughts, he ducked his head down and inhaled deeply from the crook of her neck, longingly dragging his sharp fangs over her sweaty flesh, right where her pulse pounded the loudest, but shook himself free from the scent with the last dregs of his willpower. "Later," he croaked hoarsely, "definitely later."

She was going to hold him to that. Literally, if she had to.

"Come on," he said, "let's go back down. I'm starting to get sore from all this flying."

She had to quickly hide her smile, which was easy since she was already concentrating on lowering her arousal. "You've done really well; when I first started I couldn't stay in the air for over ten minutes at a time. We've been up here for a good hour and a half now."

The ego boost was clear on his face, and while they were gliding to the ground, Kurumu was inwardly rubbing her hands together in glee. She would be very much prepared for _later_.

…

To her great dismay, she forgot about the _other_ problem that would come with the one she was already anticipating. Fatigue. Tsukune's first experience with flying had gone flawlessly, but vampire or no, he was still susceptible to exhaustion, and by the end of the day he had a legitimate reason to be too tired to move, as much as she hated to admit it. She really should have cut their lesson short when he could have still gone on comfortably, but there was nothing she could do about it now.

Though the girls had been staying with Ruby so far over their vacation, Kurumu had only wanted one body beside her that night, and with that option gone, she had decided to just stay in her room. The conundrum of Rei's lodging had fixed itself when the dragon and Yukari had stated they would be rooming together, for a little while at least, and while it was a good solution, what the two could come up with if left to their own devices filled them all with terror.

On the other side of things, Tsukune expected to fall asleep the second he hit his futon, once again in its rightful place in his room. Try as he might, sleep just would not come to the weary vampire, and it took him a second to figure out why. It was startling to realize that ever since break had started, he hadn't slept alone in all that time. Rei was a constant companion in either of her forms, a source of heat and reassurance. His first night back he had practically passed out, but even then she had been in his lap, and what was more he had awoken to not just his Familiar, but all of his family as well, while Moka had been with him the next night. By himself, the sandman eluded him, and with each passing minute displayed by his digital clock, Tsukune became more frustrated. After two agonizing hours, he sucked up his pride and snuck out of his room, invisible before his door opened.

It was as a bleary-eyed charm mistress that answered his gentle knocks, clearly plagued by the same predicament he had found himself in. "Who's there?" she mumbled.

He wasn't about to risk being seen, no matter how unlikely it was. "Would you mind if I came in?" he replied softly, still concealed.

Her addled expression instantly became focused. "Tsukune?" She shivered when his hand ghosted down her cheek to alert her of his presence, and she smiled warmly soon after. "Couldn't sleep, huh?"

He had never been so glad to be invisible, not even when he was hunting, because his blush would have surely lit up the hallway. "If I say yes will you let me come in?"

"What? Don't like the idea of getting caught in the girl's dorm in the middle of the night?"

"Now that you mention it, yeah, that doesn't sound like too much fun. It's a good thing that right now you're just the crazy person talking to herself to everyone else. My camouflage isn't foolproof, but in this lighting it might as well be." Given his tone, she suspected he was smiling toothily.

She pouted. "You call me crazy then you want me to let you into my room? You must think I'm some kind of succubus or something that wouldn't care about anything as long as she got her destined one into her bed." That said, a sly grin formed on her face. "Lucky for you I am!"

Slowly, his outline defined itself from the darkness and filled in, revealing her lover's equally amused expression. "You enjoyed that way too much."

Her grin took a decidedly sleepy turn. "I haven't been able to get to sleep…I'm so tired anything's funny to me. I was just about to sneak back up to Ruby's room as it is."

He could certainly relate to that. "I'm really sorry, Kurumu; if I did what I should have done I wouldn't be here now, mostly 'cause I'd already be here. I guess…I know I said sorry but…well—what I'm trying to say is…"

She shushed him with a tender finger over his lips, nothing but understanding as she always was. Her hair was mussed, her eyes were thick with fatigue and she was wearing nothing more than a shirt that barely covered her panties, but her smile still made his chest tighten. She really was a fantasy come to life, and not for the first time did he marvel at how their lives had turned out. She didn't need words to tell him his request was granted, she simply pulled him in by his hand and directed him to their destination. Deft hands rid him of his shorts, so in only his boxers he waited for her, and when she shucked her shirt to join him in undress he wasn't that surprised.

What words were there to describe a Succubus in full bloom, ripe with love? He could only think of one: breathtaking. There was no makeup to hinder her natural beauty, though she only used it sparingly even during the day. She was a succubus, she was beyond such petty things. She would use it, of course, every advantage was a good advantage, but she would never rely on it. That she would allow him to see her like this, tousled and tired, half naked and positively magnificent in the paltry streams of moonlight coming in through her blinds, she just took his breath away.

Sliding into place next to him, their bare skin pressed flush as she moved to make his chest her pillow. Curling up under the covers with each other as company, everything felt right.

"I missed it too, you know?" she sighed drowsily. "All this time we've been sharing one space, and I didn't think of what I'd gotten used to. I missed going to bed by Mizore, knowing I'd probably wake up holding her. I missed the light smell of Ruby's room, Yukari's little snores, Kokoa's sleep-talking. This whole month I've missed you, but with them around it was easier. When you left for bed I _was_ disappointed, but I thought it'd be just a short sleep and I would see you again. I walked into my room and suddenly…it just…didn't feel the same anymore. I thought I could ignore it; now I know I was trying to fool myself. You don't need to feel ashamed about needing someone, because we all need you just as much, hmm?"

He kissed her forehead as he pulled her closer. She understood. Kurumu may not ever be considered 'smart' in the scholastic sense, though she was getting better, but she had a gift in one of the only things that truly mattered. His only was to response was with a hushed, "I love you."

And to her, that was what counted. "I love you too."

Despite the desire by both to just lay in the comfort of one another, within moments darkness claimed them.

…

Most teenagers, of either the human or monster variety, shared in the common trait of staying in bed until noon when school didn't beckon. Of course, most teenagers didn't spend most of their summer break getting up _early_ so they would have an entire day to train, which meant that Kurumu's internal alarm woke her up long before her actual alarm clock would have. A quick glance at said clock told her that her body had only allowed itself a little extra sleep to compensate for her previous insomnia, but all things considered she felt just as good as if she had slept the whole night through. She would put money on it being because of her pillow.

Speaking of which, he had just muttered something and tightened his grip around her, and _that_ she greatly enjoyed and only snuggled in closer. It had been too long since she had been held like this. She craved his warmth, yearned for his touch, simply needed _him_. Waking up to Mizore and the others helped to numb the sensation, but truth be told even over their month-long sleepover it had felt like there was a piece missing. They all knew it too, and they knew what it was. It was him. His laugh, his smile, his presence; he was as much a part of them as they were of him, and with him gone they had needed the focus the training promised, otherwise she didn't know what they would have done.

That was of no consequence anymore, he was back, and more importantly she was skin to skin with him, naught but two articles of clothing separating them from what _else_ she wanted. At that moment, she didn't mind waiting a little longer. With her cheek pressed against his chest, she could hear his heart beating, strong and steady, just like with their closeness his scent was all too tempting, and she could only draw it in longingly. From within, her repressed libido ached for relief, only made more prominent when she trailed her leg up his thigh and felt his morning 'condition'. She salivated just at the thought. There was _so_ many things she could do, and she was sure he would appreciate each and every one even with how he was going to wake up. That part wouldn't be very pleasant, she knew that from experience. She had years of practice under her belt and her body was already accustomed to the strain certain muscles would be under; he had no such benefit. During Inner Moka's training he certainly used and developed them, but they wouldn't be used to working in tandem or in such a way. It was probably only because of that training that he had even been able to stay up as long as he did in the first place.

Fighting the urge to strip off his underwear and give him a wake-up call to remember, she contented herself with the plan she had come up with the day before. It was pointless if vampires proved to be beyond that kind of pain, but from what she had gleaned from watching Moka during her spars, they weren't, and she was counting on that. Knowing Tsukune as she did, it would turn into a situation for reciprocation and then things would get _really_ interesting. So, as much as she hated leaving his comforting hold, she maneuvered her way up and out of the covers, but not without a quick peck to his tempting lips.

Like he knew she was no longer by him, she hardly had time to chalk the ward circle onto her wall before a loud, and most-assuredly distressed, groan hit her ears, and when she looked over her shoulder she saw Tsukune flopping back to the bed after trying to get up. She giggled when he slurred, "I didn't think _anything_ could match Inner Moka's Training of Doom. I stand—err, _lay_—corrected."

"How bad?" she asked simply.

Most of her question was answered when only his eyes moved to see where she was. "Oh there's pain, more pain, even more pain, and a bit of agony thrown in there for flavor. I haven't hurt this much since…you know, I just realized I have way too many examples for that idiom to work right." Her giggle turned into a full-blown laugh, and he glared at her pathetically. "Did you know this would happen?"

She rolled her eyes. "Tsukune, I told you I could barely last ten minutes when I first started. Do you think that stopped me from going again as soon as I could? The next day I could hardly move! Mom knew it would happen to me because it happened to her, and she used the chance to… _teach_ me something," she purred, and he gulped at the look she was giving him. If he didn't like that look so much it would be unnerving.

"Um, what?" he squeaked, then quickly coughed to clear his throat.

With a deliberate sway to her hips, knowing he was staring all the while, she moved to her cupboards and picked out a bottle she had been waiting years to use on him. "You better tell me now if you need to use the bathroom, because you are _mine_ for the next few hours otherwise."

Whether he had managed to adapt to the discomfort or it was an innate ability of all males when presented with a promise of carnal pleasure was up for debate, whichever it was, he managed to fight against gravity until he was seated awkwardly on the side of her bed. "You don't have a bathroom," he noted with dawning unease.

She grinned. "No, but I have a room _very_ close to the bathrooms, and a lover who can become invisible on command."

The groan when he realized what she was insinuating was purely for his dignity that time, not out of his body's aches. She seemed to know what she was doing though, and was prepared to assist in a problem she herself had had before. Right then he wasn't too proud to admit he needed her help, especially if he wanted to do anything later on in the day, as he had promised Noriko and Isao.

Surprise of surprises, Fate gave him a break and everything went smoothly, with Kurumu playing interference just in case, but his taxed muscles were burning when he finally collapsed face first back onto her bed. Willing what he had just done to the farthest reaches of his mind, he barely noticed Kurumu moving him into a more comfortable position on her bed, but that stopped when she pulled off his shorts yet again. He was long past caring at that point however; he had faith in her, and he was hoping whatever she did next at least alleviated a little of the strain. He tensed instinctively when his back was squirted with liquid, but its consistency and the lack of pain proved it wasn't water. That was blown from his thoughts when lithe hands started coaxing it into his skin.

"Oh dear _God_," he moaned appreciatively, and out of the corner of his eye he saw her beaming at him.

"When I say I know my bodies, I mean I _know_ my bodies," she explained demurely as she dug into a particularly knotted cluster. Tsukune didn't even try to answer her, he could only make another inarticulate sound of pleasure. It hurt too, there was no saying anything against that, but it felt too good to focus on that minor detail. "It's funny, when Moka wanted to learn how to fight, Inner thought it would be best to focus her on pressure point strikes, but they didn't think to ask me if I could help. Between her and Kokoa they had it covered, but still, not asking a _Succubus_ about a body? I guess I'll just have to teach you instead." She received a brief murmur of agreement as his body continued to go limp under her skilled fingers.

"It's pretty simple if you leave out all the medical mumbo-jumbo Mom says they go into in massage therapy. It's all about feeling what's wrong and knowing which muscles need to be relaxed to help it…which is medical mumbo-jumbo, but we'll get into that later," she realized with a nervous chuckle. "Nerve clusters are actually pretty amazing, some are in places you'd never believe would be able to affect the other parts of the body, but they do. Take this, for example," she said as she briefly left his back and moved her oily hands to one of his feet. Her grin came back with a vengeance when he started squirming as she rubbed her thumbs into a particular spot. "Don't worry, it's perfectly normal to get aroused during a massage." Moving back up, she licked the edge of his ear seductively while he tried to adjust himself inconspicuously, but she would have none of that and reached down to help him. "In fact, I'm _counting_ on it. So you just lay back and enjoy what I do to you, lover, before we get to the _good stuff_."

Who was he to argue with that? Even if he did want to, she might stop her massaging, and that was the _last_ thing he wanted. Kurumu was a never-ending source of hidden potential that would always amaze him. He knew her, he loved her, but every now and then she would show another part of the mystery of who she was and he could only fall deeper in love with her. She was a proud creature, proud of her body, proud of her heritage, proud of the effect she had on men and women alike, but when she loved she loved with her entire being. For such a proud and absolutely _dangerous_ woman, around those she loved she was the most empathetic person he had ever met. If she only applied herself more in her classes she would make an excellent psychiatrist or nurse, even a doctor, but he knew she'd probably go into something like modeling. It was perfect for her after all; no photographer in the world would be dumb enough to turn her away.

It was hard to focus on anything but her magic hands as they ran over him, easing the stress of his muscles none too innocently. She was sexual in everything she did, and more than once did he feel the bare softness of her large breasts pressing against his back as she moved her whole body into him. When he felt her tug at his boxers he didn't even think twice, he just let her remove them, but he still felt his face heat up when she dragged her fingers over his butt with a satisfied purr. It was his turn to make that sound when she started working on his legs, ever so slowly rubbing the oil into them one at a time, expertly playing with the nerves she found there. Her voice was hushed to a tone of liquid lust as she carefully detailed what she was doing, why, and what _else_ it was good for before moving on, leaving him painfully hard and yet wonderfully relaxed at the same time. It didn't help that he could smell her own arousal growing by the minute, enveloping him in her distracting pheromones, demanding he roll her over and sate the primal demands she was sending out.

Then that breathy voice was right by his ear, and it asked, "You want to try?"

His responding, "Hell yes," was more of a growl than it was in the spectrum of human language, just as her grin was more of the feline variety, and one that had just caught the proverbial canary at that. Getting up was significantly easier for him after what she had done, and she leered at him hungrily when his engorged manhood was exposed to her perusal, but gulped when she saw the look on his face. His breathing was deep and tightly controlled, his eyes half-lidded and lustful, but perhaps the most telling feature was the length of his canines as he drank in the image she made. With her full bosom and most of the front of her body glistening with oil from where she touched him, fantasy no longer did her justice, but he simply couldn't come up with another word. He would have to show her instead.

Reaching for the bottle of massage oil, he motioned for her to lay down, and nearly choked when she slid off the only article of clothing she had on before doing exactly that, thus giving him a perfect view of her naked backside. His hormones were screaming at him to take the opportunity she was so willingly giving him, as was his aching arousal, but he wouldn't, not until he had paid her back.

"Do you need me to walk you through it again?" she murmured into her pillow, but rather than answer, he generously doused his hands with the lightly scented lubrication and slowly started coating the skin of her back.

Truthfully, the drawl she had used to inform him of what her actions were for had ensured that he would never forget them even if he _tried_, but he also had another thing he could rely on to make sure he didn't screw up. Stretching that sense outward, he _felt_ her under his fingers, felt how her muscles had been stressed during flight, but more than that it expanded until he knew everything ailing her just as it was meant to do. The second part of that sense would be to take those within himself, but he held the urge back. He was going to do this the old fashioned way.

He started where the knots where the most obvious, between her shoulder-blades, gently caressing the pads of his thumbs over her silken skin. Most would likely be surprised at the iron bands of sinew he felt beneath it, but he had long known of her strength, and after finding out just what it took to fly he had a whole new appreciation for the times she had carried more than one of them up with her. She really was an incredible woman.

"Mhmm…Tsukune…don't be afraid to use…MHm…more pressure. I'll tell you if it hurts," she mumbled, and her loud moan when he took her advice went straight to his groin. He swallowed thickly as he desperately ignored the fact that they were both very naked and in a position that would make utilizing that nakedness very easy. Distracting himself with the constant flow of information telling him where she most needed to be attended, he slowly worked his way up her neck before starting the trail down, grinding the heels of his palms into problem areas that needed a more broad approach. The longer he grazed his hands down the contours of her voluptuous body, the more he came to realize he _enjoyed_ doing so. It was no surprise, really, when he thought about it. He loved doing things that brought his lovers pleasure; that he loved how they tasted was an unexpected bonus. Just the same, the breathy gasps and guttural groans she gave as he coaxed her tangled tendons to relax was every bit as gratifying as if she was the one pleasuring _him_.

When he got to her feet she inhaled sharply, bouncing suddenly stiff, but when he showed no sign of stopping she positively _melted_ into her bed with a sigh of profound bliss. The salve made his work effortless, and the slight cramping he felt in his hands was made worthwhile with every noise she made. He wasn't content until he was sure every inch had been covered and stroked to the satisfaction of his extrasensory kinesthesia, which had Kurumu begging for him to turn his attention higher. For that he took his sweet time; she had a body that _demanded_ it be worshipped, and he wasn't about to let it go without. Though short in stature, she was no less of a work of art, and her mewls as he trailed back up her legs made his erection ache.

His senses tunneled, every one focused on her, and he was forced to lick his suddenly dry lips when he felt the soaked folds of her womanhood. His fangs throbbed in his mouth at the succubus so freely presenting herself before him, going so far as to lift up her hips beseechingly into his hand, and when he slipped a finger into her dripping core, her sharp cry as she clenched around the digit tore at the last limits of his restraint. It was right then that he remembered he had no reason _to_ restrain himself, which was emphasized rather unmistakably when Kurumu abruptly transformed, splaying her shivering wings out around her, but more importantly allowing her tail to wrap around his waist and press him insistently against her. With him all but fallen over her she had no way to get up, but that didn't stop her from grinding his arousal into the slippery cleft of her ass with the prehensile appendage.

"_Tsukune~!_"

Only a brief moment was taken to steady his arms on either side of her lest he crush her fragile wings, then after much too long the succubus and her vampire were one again. She let loose a soundless wail as her lover plunged into her waiting depths, and heard him hiss savagely behind her before he began in earnest. They had both had enough of the slow exploration that was their massages, now was the time for different needs to be met. A Succubus' lust met the force of a Vampire's instincts, and she could only bite her pillow and scream with joy as she dreamt of feeling the full untamed fury that his rosary contained. From their position his every stroke sent spikes of electricity up her spine and down her toes, mercilessly assaulted the sensitive walls of her entrance as only the shallow penetration could, and with her small size and his impressive girth she was being rubbed all the right ways.

Her breath was coming in ragged pants as she jerked with every new spear of stimulation, and she trembled when she felt his lips trail down the leathery skin of a wing. It was such an unusual feeling if she was being honest with herself; her wings weren't used to being touched, but because of that the unused nerve endings lit up spectacularly under his gentle affections, even as he was far less gentle in his thrusts. That was exactly how she wanted it, and she screamed as she worked a hand under herself to attend to her throbbing clit. As much as she loved their current position, her precious jewel went neglected and she was dying to feel him _deeper_.

"Tsukune! Oh g-god, _Tsukune!_ Please, _more!_"

Not about to let that request go unheeded, he fixed himself in place and pulled her up with him by her hips, earning a gurgled shriek as she was simultaneously brought to her hands and knees and filled with his entire length. Her mind shut down. The orgasm caught her unprepared as she drowned in the breathless euphoria, where she felt like she could only weep in joy as he pressed on, ravaging nerves crying for more just as she was vocally.

She had been wound tight with need, and while Moka complained, the vampiress seemed to forget that _she_ had been the last one to enjoy their lover before his absence. As a Succubus, _knowing_ what she was missing and craving it was pure torture, but neither her memories or her fantasies could compare to what she was currently going through. It tore at her throat, crushed down on her lungs; it sent her muscles into convulsions and rose bumps on her flesh. She was stretched so beautifully she never wanted the sensation to end, and yet all of that was secondary to the knowledge that it was her destined one doing it to her.

The room echoed with wet slaps as their slicked bodies met almost viciously, the only other noise the duo's sounds of rapture as they continued to seek completion. For Tsukune, that kept getting harder to hold off the longer they went on. Kurumu's constant pleas for harsher treatment taunted his darker nature relentlessly, her unintelligible moans stroked his ego higher, but what her body was doing to his was by far the biggest contributor. She was squeezing him incessantly, demanding his release, and her heat would _not_ be denied. Propping one foot up for leverage, he picked up the pace yet again, slamming into her with as much force as he was able, and she howled in delight as he bottomed out inside her again and again.

Just watching her was hard to take. She was simply gorgeous, and it was easy to see where Succubae got their legends. Black wings quivering of their own volition, attached to a body too impossibly seductive to be human; demonic tail wrapped imploringly around his waist, sweaty sapphire hair stuck to skin shimmering with clear oil; even what escaped her lips sounded unearthly. He could easily picture such a beauty demanding his soul in payment.

Suddenly that same tail that had been drawing him ever closer was pushing him away, so however reluctant he might be, he still withdrew. She turned on shaky legs, eyeing him hungrily, and sat him down with both hands on his shoulders. "Enough baby, I need to _see_ you," she crooned lustfully, and slid herself back onto him with a shuddering sigh. Pelvis to pelvis, chest to chest, she wrapped her arms around his neck and started a deep, languid kiss as she began rocking her hips back and forth. The balm over their bodies made the motions smooth even with the amount of contact between them, which was as much as they could possibly have. Before, speed and force were driving them to the edge, now so close that had been replaced with pressure and intimacy, drawing out that agonizingly wonderful trek to climax.

"Kurumu…ah damn it…god…!"

Damp bangs pasted to her forehead as shook out her hair and smiled. "You like that, Tsukune? Do you feel as good as I do?" He hissed his answer as she gyrated on his lap, and as he did she noticed just how large his fangs had gotten. Truly, lust and bloodlust were only separated by a very thin line to a Vampire, but she wanted that too. Sitting as they were, her clitoris was finally receiving the attention it so desperately wanted, and combined with the constant depth he achieved so effortlessly she was swiftly approaching that peak again. This time she didn't want to be alone in that. "Come on," she whispered hotly, "I'm so _close_. Bite me, slake your thirst. _Come with me, Tsukune_."

She felt him start to tense up beneath her, and with a strangled cry that vaguely resembled her name, he sunk his fangs hard into the side of her neck and gave in to the siren call. His breath locked up and his muscles tensed, unintentionally crushing her to him as much as he could as her blood flowed down his throat and his essence flowed into her. He felt her gasp, felt her clasp to him, trying to bring herself even closer than he was already making her, and in that second something _changed_.

He was within her body, tasting her blood, feeling her power, and then he could feel _her_ feeling _him_. Wings burst from his back as his tail instinctively sought out hers, and then he knew what was happening. She was seeking out his youki, and in doing so the one most like hers had jumped to the surface.

"Take it," he rasped into her neck. "I can't use it anyway; just take it."

The first time she hadn't known what she was doing, had no idea that she was unconsciously siphoning off his energy. Riding high on the waves of bliss crashing through her, she was dimly aware of something beyond herself as he spoke. It wasn't like sight or even sonar, it was the tiniest hint that she was no longer alone in spirit, a _connection_, and one she could exploit. When she did, she bucked in place and muffled her scream into his shoulder. It had opened wide at the slightest prodding, and unlike before where she hadn't felt it at all, she could only describe the following rush as _orgasmic_. That explained why she wouldn't have noticed it the first time. If she was doing it unknowingly it could only come through a trickle at a time, and Mizore and Tsukune had made sure she was never totally in control of her own faculties.

They sat on her bed, shaking, as they slowly came back to themselves. As their heart-rates steadied and their breathing evened out, brown eyes met violet and gradually, grins broke out on their faces. They shared a chuckle as they leaned forward to lock lips, and in a flash the passion was relit. Exchanging quick pecks as their hands started wandering again, Kurumu couldn't help but smile as she took in the large black wings behind him and felt his tail rubbing her own.

"Up for another round?" she asked impishly, and he smirked as he shifted, alerting her to what was still inside her. "I'll take that as a yes."

With a glance at her clock, Tsukune's smirk widened. "Oh I'm sure we have time for more than just _one_ round. After all, I have a lot to make up to my brilliant succubus."

Her smile was dark and lustful as she licked her lips.

"That you do, Vampire. That you do."

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V^^^V

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Yukari woke up panting, soaked in sweat and grinning like a fool. Her sheets and pajamas would need to be washed but she just couldn't bring herself to care. The dream had been even more intense than last time, but she didn't know if it was because of the ferocity of the act itself or that the magic behind it had become stronger. She suspected it was a little of both. If that was what she had to look forward to, she was eagerly anticipating it. At least she had a great way to wait out the years.

A sharp inhalation reminded her that she wasn't alone in her room, and she looked over to see Rei had shot out of her futon, clutching at her chest as she tried to force air into her lungs. Her dark skin was as damp as the young witch's and her gray eyes were darting around the room, likely looking for the source, only to realize it had all been in her head. Not that she was unaware of the cause however.

The disguised dragon fell back to her pillow and ran a hand through her platinum hair as she willed her breathing to slow. She certainly knew why the coral-eyed sorceress had made such a blissful racket now. Willing her newly ignited jealousy back down where it belonged, she couldn't help but identify further with the little witch across from her. They weren't kidding themselves, each knew the other was attracted to Tsukune, so of course their topics of conversation over the night had quickly devolved into the telltale squeals of a slumber party. For Rei, it was a truly unique experience, and one she was quickly coming to love. There was really only one thing she could say.

"Incredible. To think, magic such as that is possible…"

What she _didn't_ say was louder than what she _did_.

Her friend chortled as she wiped the sleep from her eyes. "It's certainly something else, huh? A Succubus' mind magic can get pretty powerful, especially if they get to the Nightwalker level like Kurumu." With a mighty yawn, she rolled over. "Now if you don't mind, I'm gonna try to get some more sleep before we have to meet up with the others. You might want to do the same."

Rei quirked a brow tiredly. "While I agree with the decision, I feel the need to ask…why?"

Yukari smiled into her pillow as she shut her eyes. "Rei, you've been with Tsukune for how many weeks now? What do you remember about his stamina?"

The cocoa-skinned girl practically dove back under the covers.

She chuckled inwardly. _Ah, it's so nice to have someone sharing my pain ~desu!_

For now, dreamland beckoned.

…

For another, she doubted she would be able to get back to dreamland anytime that day. She was only thankful she hadn't screamed in rage when she awoke, otherwise she might have woken her sister, the ice maiden, and the older witch, and she had a sinking feeling that if she did _that_ she might have been _forced_ back into unconsciousness. Her sister could be extremely protective of her time with her blood-mate, nocturnal conjuration or no.

Kokoa rested her forearm over her eyes and groaned softly. As much as she hated to admit it, she had needed that. Getting out of 'lust' with someone was harder than it seemed, especially when they were so damn good at getting at the itch she hadn't been able to scratch no matter how hard she tried. It looked like she was going to have to start donating her blood on a more regular basis if she wanted to keep from going insane, but she would kill for it to be to anyone other than _him_.

Then again, it was her exposure to him that had spawned her frustration to begin with. It was _his_ bite that had shown her a height of pleasure she hadn't even known was within reach, and a succubus-made experience that _involved_ him to show it wasn't a one-time thing either. Of course, then he had to go and keep proving that he could do more than just that to her already infatuated hormones. The boy had made her beloved _Onee-sama_ admit to loving him, and if that wasn't enough, had fought not one, but _two_ vampires, _sealed_, just to demonstrate she didn't need to do everything like she had before

She would kill the bloody moron if she didn't want to bed him so much!

Her eyes widened. _ARGH!_

She should kill the bloody moron _for_ making her want to bed him so much!

She groaned again. It sounded better, but wasn't really. It was like wanting to kill chocolate because it tasted so good!

Speaking of tasting good, she hadn't enjoyed his blood in a while either…

_ARGH!_

It was going to be a long day, and an even longer night.

...

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	24. Crashing Low

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Rosario+Vampire, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story. Simple enough, ne? Just don't copy from this story and we're all good!

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…**Crashing Low**

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That afternoon found Isao and Noriko standing outside the clubroom for the school's newspaper, exactly as had been asked of them the day prior. Since no one else was around they made small talk to kill time, but that didn't last long before they saw a group of familiar hair colors coming towards them. Their first hint the day wasn't going to involve just sitting down and typing up articles was the clothes on the older students. They were simple, easy to move in, easily replaceable, and more importantly, had seen their fair share of wear. Not that it did anything to lower their beauty, or in Yukari's case merely added to her cuteness.

There was still a fair bit of doubt between a few of them when they met up, directed mostly at the female Youko, but nonetheless Ruby let them all into the room, where they each took a seat around the room to make themselves comfortable.

Noriko was the one that pointed out the obvious. "It would seem we're missing some people."

The original club members traded awkward glances, but luckily before anyone had to say anything the door slammed open and Kurumu stumbled in, dressed similarly. Though they had seen it often enough with all the time they spent together over the summer so far, the group still admired the unassuming length of her cerulean tresses. When it was out of its traditional clip, it fell well down her shoulders and even to the middle of her back, something both freshman hadn't seen before if their dangling mouths were any indication. Besides which, she looked positively _radiant_, and smiled as she pulled her hair back into a plain ponytail rather than its usual frilly clamp. Her movements were a tad discomfited, and when she pulled up a chair she sat down gingerly, but if anything that only increased the smile on her face.

"G'morning everyone! Sorry I'm a bit late!" she cheered, and Mizore fixed her with an amused look.

"Yes, you look completely _crushed_. Did you see Tsukune on your way here?" Her acting skills were top notch, to sound so honest even though she knew beyond reproach where he had been.

"I'm here, I'm here!" a voice sounded from down the hallway, and shortly thereafter the former human skidded to a stop outside the door. Seeing them all looking at him, he waved sheepishly. "Hehe, sorry guys."

The final nail in the coffin of what they were going to do today was hammered in by _his_ apparel, in that he was wearing exactly what he had when he had shown up to fight the vampires, although he had thrown a white button-up on over the faded black shirt to hide the ragged ends of its nonexistent sleeves.

"Okay, did I miss a memo or something?" Noriko asked coldly. "You said we were going to talk and start on some interviews for the new term's paper."

"And how long did you think that would take?" Moka countered. "We're not doing your life stories, we're just giving the school a quick peek into who we are. We want them to learn about us from _us_ and what we do around them, not from an article." Taking a brief minute to sort out her thoughts, she eventually went on at her friends' urging. "I'm thinking we should spend most of the other space on the Commission's mission statement and a quick recount of the most important rules. We have to assure the students that it's going to be different this time. We're not going to be throwing people in jail for running in the halls and we're not going to be beating them down for minor offenses. We need to get it across that we're still the same people they know, but now there are more eyes around the school." She suddenly shrunk in on herself as she looked at the others for reassurance. They had talked about it already, so she was mostly just relaying the obvious, but it still felt a bit strange to be in a position of authority more suited to her inner self. _Her_ no one would dare question. "Um, right?"

Warm smiles were all that met her insecurity, and Tsukune was the one to step forward and say, "That sounds perfect, but we need to add one thing. Nura-san, you wanted to join the Newspaper Club, or at least help out. When Kuyou was in charge of the student police they literally burned our paper just for saying things they didn't 'approve of', and you already mentioned the school worrying about censorship when we talked yesterday, Myobu-san. We _can't_ have that possibility hanging over our heads. Most of us will be gone next year and you'll only have Kokoa to keep you in line; the year after that you'll be the seniors, and if you're still in the club, the two ranking students. Who'll stop you from doing whatever you want then, showing how it's done to the ones under you and starting the whole process over again? And yes, that is a concern.

"The headmaster has made a lot of good changes to the safety commission, but for our club above all we need to make sure we're always accountable even later on. We should talk to Nekonome-sensei about changing the newspaper so that even if one of the students is the editor-in-chief, she has to look over everything beforehand and if, for any reason, something doesn't happen as it should it goes straight to the headmaster. It's important that everyone knows we're being held responsible by the highest authority in the school." His eyes lit up when they passed by Ruby, and the witch fiddled with her fingers as she blushed under his gaze. "Actually, maybe we already are. I keep forgetting Ruby isn't a student _or_ a member of the club. She's the assistant advisor, and she'll be here even when we aren't. We'll just remind everyone that she's also the _aide _to the headmaster. You fine with that, Ruby?"

She sauntered over to him with a smirk disconcerting to the freshmen of the room, and dragged her fingers down his arm coyly. "So you're asking me to keep the police in line, _hmmm?_ I suppose I could do that. I promise that as long as I'm here the Newspaper Club won't be influenced by the Commission. _Or else_." The way her eyes glinted at the end made both Noriko and Isao tremble inside.

"I don't know," Kurumu said hesitantly. "She's not exactly the most…um…"

"Forceful?" Yukari supplied.

"Yeah! She not really the most forceful person there is. I mean, you're a wonderful woman, Ruby, don't get me wrong, but you're…well…"

Their resident genius sighed in exasperation. "Just spit it out already ~desu! Ruby, we love you, but you're a masochist. There, was that so hard?"

She yelped when in less than a second, her elder counterpart was right in front of her with what might normally be a beatific smile on her face, if not for the aura of malice that wouldn't have been out of place on Inner Moka gathering above that is. Cowering in fear seemed like a very good idea to the young witch right then.

"What was that? You don't think I can carry out Tsukune's orders? Is that what you're saying?"

Her short life flashed before her. "Ye—NO! No, that's not what I'm saying ~desu! You can do it, you can do it ~desu! Please don't hurt me!"

In less time than it took to initiate the confrontation, it was over and all was right again. The sunflower sorceress gave her little friend an innocent smile and patted her on the head. "I didn't think so. Thanks for the vote of confidence."

The clubroom was deathly silent in the aftermath, while Mizore and Kurumu quietly upped Ruby's position on their 'people not to piss off' list. Needless to say, there was no doubt in anyone's mind that the ebon-haired mage would succeed in her selected course so long as she interpreted it as an order from Tsukune.

Said vampire rubbed the back of his neck, flattered, relieved, and pretty embarrassed. Though it might not be the most ethical way to go about a situation, it _did_ work, and Ruby seemed happy so he wasn't going to say anything about that, however much he might want to. "Well, we kinda got off topic, didn't we?" The terrified firsties just nodded numbly, and he could see that Moka was visibly trying to control a satisfied smile from growing. Regardless of what Noriko was and how she might have been raised, she was also only a First Year student. She wasn't set in her ways; she wasn't beyond hope. It was comforting to be reminded of that. With a small smile of his own, he cleared his throat.

"Getting back to your question: no, you didn't miss anything because we just decided this after we left you two yesterday. Listen, we know you're both reasonably powerful…" He ignored the blonde's indignant huff, "…you wouldn't have been selected for this if you weren't, but we know better than anyone that there are times when you need to be stronger than you _can_ be, let alone _are_. We're stepping into one where we have to be anything from mediators, enforcers, and even protectors. We can't bully, but like the headmaster said we can't allow ourselves to be bullied either. The two of you have basically been handpicked to take over where we leave off next year, so we decided we might as well help you get ready, because you're going to need it."

After giving them enough time to digest that information, Kurumu graced them with one of the kindest grins in her repertoire. They wanted them to know what they were getting into, not scare them to death. "We're not going to sugarcoat it; it'll be hard, but worth it." She clapped her hands, as if wiping them of that particular topic. "But enough about that, let's get to know each other a bit, ne? We'll get to the training later, but only if you want it."

Like they were going to say no to _them_, and their expressions showed that.

Inner Moka smirked maliciously.

…

"Welcome to Paradise."

Those words were the initiation into what would become a world of pain for the two underclassmen, but they couldn't even acknowledge them since they were too busy staring at the impossible vista stretching before their wide eyes. They had always wondered where the fight they had witnessed via Shikigami had taken place. They wondered no longer.

"What…what is this place?" Noriko asked in awe.

Ruby twirled in place as she relished in the song around her. "This is a sanctuary made _many_ years ago, a paradise for monsters that risked extinction otherwise. You'll see things here you might have thought long gone, and they're not all friendly. Don't worry though, we can handle it if anything happens. Now that you've seen this you're our responsibility, mine in particular, so you won't tell _anyone_ about this place…or you won't like the consequences."

"Lips: sealed," Isao assured concisely as he pantomimed zipping his mouth shut. He for one had no desire to see what the Newspaper Club could do to someone they _actually_ had a beef with, and by her nodding his blonde companion was thinking similar thoughts. Neither teen was going to deny the chance to get stronger, and training with three _vampires_ was too good to pass up. Comfortable in his summer yukata, Isao had decided not to change and had only grabbed a wooden sword from his room, while Noriko had exchanged her starched and ironed clothes for the school's track suit. All that was left was to find out what was in store for them.

Having discussed what the group had been up to without them the evening before, Rei was quick to pull the two witches off for a more intensive lesson in what more they could do with their magic. From a similar discussion with Inner Moka, it was _Mizore_ who put her hand on Noriko's shoulder, much to Tsukune's shock.

"M-Mizore?"

She inclined her head with a serene quirk to her lips. "I may not like fire, but every Snow Woman knows how to deal with it should the time come. To make her stronger faster, constant confrontation with her weakness is for the best."

He was in front of her in an instant, worry on every feature. "But she's _your_ weakness too."

Her eyes darted to the Youko and back, and eventually her decision was to give a chaste peck to his nose and watch his face light up. It was innocent enough to come across as playful while not intimate enough to make the younger students look too far into it. "Trust me." Those words took any argument he might have had out at the knees, so he just nodded solemnly. "Now, is there a river nearby?"

Another nod answered her. "I'll lead you to it, it won't take long. You'll signal if you run into any trouble, right?"

"Of course."

As they walked off, Isao was left with the two remaining vampires and Kurumu, who looked between each other in silence.

"So…I'll be with Aono-senpai when he gets back?" he asked finally.

Kokoa shifted awkwardly "Well, I see you've got a bokken, so you must be somewhat familiar with swordplay…but I was really hoping to fight with Onee-sama today…"

"I think that's the next reasonable step most of us need to take," Kurumu expounded. "We can practice all we want, but now Mizore and I can have a challenge that'll really make us better."

"We both agree," Moka responded as she fingered her rosary. "I can work-out with anyone to help me, but Ura-chan can help everyone else. It was really her idea for Mizore to be the one to train Myobu-san. Mizore's strong, _really_ strong, but she doesn't like showing it. Facing fire will give her some more confidence."

Kurumu surprised her by laughing outright. "Confidence? She has plenty of that. She's _scared_. You saw what she did to Alex-chan with one icicle, right? If she wanted to, she could do what Tsukune did when he came back too. It's everyone else she's worried about. You are a little right, though; all Snow Women are afraid of fire on a basic level, so having her face that should make her stronger, but where you're wrong is that she's going to do it at all and you think she lacks confidence. Over all the time I've known her and all the stuff we've been through, to me she's one of the bravest people I know. Just because she's shy doesn't mean she can't freeze the school solid if she wanted. You can put all your power into your fists and feet, _she_ has to make sure she's careful if she doesn't want to accidentally freeze everything around her when she lets loose."

"Plus, if what you're saying is true, she will get just as much out of fighting Noriko-san as Noriko-san will get out of fighting her." All three stared at Isao, whom had said it. He simply yawned and scratched the side of his head with his wood sword. "Two weaknesses going at it will strengthen both in the long run. Fire melts ice, which makes water, which can make more ice to put out the fire. The only way for fire to overpower it completely would be for it to eliminate all the moisture, even in the air if it turns to steam, and it's obvious Shirayuki-senpai knows that. With a river close by she might as well be invincible—if she has enough strength and control, of course."

The bluette gave him a more appraising look than she had before. "That's…pretty accurate, actually. Maybe we'll just let you choose who you want to train with; we'll help you either way. I'm a Succubus in case you didn't know, and as you probably _should_ know, Tsukune, Moka, and Kokoa are vampires. The others are a bit preoccupied right now apparently."

Slowly, a small, unassuming smirk came over him.

"A Succubus, eh?" He seemed to find some amusement in whatever mystery was solved with her disclosure. "Well, whatever works, I don't care. I'd rather avoid this altogether, but I'm smart enough to know it would just be more trouble to try and get out of it."

_**Smart kid,**_ Moka's inner self commented, and her pink-haired equivalent giggled.

All heads turned to Tsukune's returning form as he came out of the bushes he had led the two young ladies into earlier, and he fought the urge to fidget under their combined gazes. "So…did we figure out what we're doing while I was gone?" he queried honestly, and all but Isao laughed. "What?"

"See, Nura-san? Tsukune already knows better than to fight our decisions. Good thing you didn't think your chances were any better," Kurumu confirmed with mock hauteur.

A blast of cold air punctuated by a fiery explosion in the distance nearly knocked them from their feet, and Tsukune was halfway into a sprint before he caught himself. The internal battle was visible in his body as he clenched his fists and grit his teeth, yet after they watched him shudder he turned around to come back to them. Running a hand through his lengthy hair, he managed to turn his grimace into a weak smile. "Now I know how Rei felt when I decided I needed to face the Hyakume on my own."

Kurumu gave his arm a reassuring squeeze as she sidled up to his side, and he turned a grateful look to the illusionist much to her satisfaction. "We were just talking about that. Believe me when I say she can handle herself. That poor fox won't know what hit her."

The fact that they could still feel the chill lingering around them added to her claim.

"It's not that I don't know that, but…"

"When someone you care for walks into harm's way it's only natural," Isao finished offhandedly. When he saw the older man tense he just waved him off, totally unconcerned. "Lazy, not blind. It's obvious to anyone who looks you're all very close. How close I don't know, but it's none of my business so I don't care. You're taking the time to try and get us stronger; if I'm right it has something to do with those other vampire visitors I heard about. Long story short: you're protecting each other, and helping us helps that."

**Really**_** smart kid,**_ Inner Moka amended. He might end up being more trouble than Noriko if they weren't careful, but from what they knew of him it shouldn't be a problem. They were going to have a lot of time with the two underclassmen, and even more important than getting them stronger was gaining their trust. Fear was the other route they could take, but she knew Tsukune wasn't the kind of person that could do that for long, nor would the others be able to give off the right aura for it. Only she and Kokoa truly knew what it was like to strike consuming _fear_ into another being, which she could ashamedly admit she had done to her friends initially. One of Tsukune's best traits was his ability to go on in the face of that fear, and one she would always admire.

Therefore trust was the way to go, and that required time, patience, and a level of involvement that showed they cared what happened to them. It wouldn't be that hard because they _did_ care, that was the whole reason they had gone along with being drafted into the Commission. In order to protect their school they would have to make sure it didn't fall back into bad practices once they left. As mere students they were doing as much as they could, any more would have to be done on the administrative side. Yukari wanted to be a teacher and Ruby was already part of the staff, so there was a chance that within a decade they could be assisting in more changes from _that_ side of things.

Tsukune wasn't so farsighted, at least not yet, so he focused on the Present. "You're right. We can't be sure more vampires won't show up, and they're our responsibility because they'll be coming for one of two people: Moka or Kokoa. We're not about to let that happen, and we need someone to protect the rest of the school while we're occupied. We don't want you getting hurt for our battles, but we'll make for damn sure that you're strong enough to protect yourself and anyone else _from_ our battles. Might as well tell you that straight up," he explained seriously, and both Mokas had an instant of dread at his candor. That was certainly one way to see if they were wasting their time or not.

Isao's chocolate eyes searched the amber irises of the former human with newfound intensity, mutely weighing what he found there with a sharp cunning his usual disinterest had hidden. In a heartbeat the look passed and he was staring at the clouds again, but he nodded. "Seems like the rumors about the Newspaper Club are true. Okay, I can get behind that. Where do we start?"

He exchanged glances with the other three, and they just shrugged. "I'm still a bit sore from all the flying I did yesterday, so I think I'll be best on the ground today. If you know how to use that sword I'll be your partner; I need more experience against weapons and I'm sure I can challenge you enough to help your use against unarmed fighters. And you, Moka?"

"Ura-chan can do more. I'll get in my practice later," she replied succinctly as she held out the cross she wore. No one disagreed, and with a parting kiss the _'clink'_ of the Rosario soon sounded, exposing Isao to the incredible show that was the shift between Moka's personalities.

Of course, the first thing _she_ did when she opened her red eyes was grab her blood-mate's shirt collar and pull him into a much _deeper_ kiss. If it was going to be a recurring theme like it seemed to be, Tsukune definitely wasn't going to protest.

The look she gave him when they parted made his ripped pants-turned-shorts tighten, something she was well aware of by the way she licked her lips. _**"Mmh, first things first: I'm thirsty. **_**Then**_** you can get to training. Kokoa and I have a lot we need to work on."**_

The redhead nearly fainted in joy.

Kurumu smirked. "I'll trade off with Tsukune 'cuz we're in the same boat. I'm still kinda sore too."

Both Kokoa and Moka fixed her with a dry look.

The succubus just laughed.

…

Meanwhile, two young women were staring each other down, one with alarm, the other with her normal impassiveness. Between them a wall of bladed ice sizzled but wasn't melting, despite the bolt of foxfire the blonde had shot with a great deal of her power.

"…_How?_" the blonde gaped.

Mizore simply examined her crystal fingers blankly. "I control water to make my ice, just like I can turn my ice back into water. No matter how much you melt you're only adding moisture to the air, and I can use that to make sure my ice doesn't melt at all. It's possible to get rid of it all, which is why we're by a river. I'll never run out of water here. You're in _my_ element."

A flash of winter abruptly covered the scenery in a fine layer of snow, and suddenly Noriko was even less confident.

"W-What are you d-doing?" she asked shakily.

"I talked with Moka about what she knew about Youko," the ice maiden said instead. "She said Kuyou had four tails and burned with blue fire. Yours is orange. Represented by the Kyuubi, which has nine tails, the tails must be a sign of power. So how many do you have?"

The vixen snarled at her, but backed down submissively when an icicle jumped out of the ground and stopped just short of her throat. Anger was all well and good, but there needed to be an understanding between them. Just because she was a Youko didn't mean she was all powerful, and Mizore had a great deal more experience as well. It was the first step in Moka's plan to humble the fox; having a _weakness_ be so obviously stronger would shave inches off her pride and annoy her into getting better. The understanding would come with Mizore's approach, and her personality made it perfect for her. She was blunt and concise when dealing with people she didn't know, yet she could still come across as gentle _and_ unyielding. She could be both a friend and a rival, just like what had happened with her and Kurumu, but she could also be a teacher. In other words, she was the perfect partner for someone like Noriko.

"Two," the girl muttered, cheeks red with shame. "Kuyou had _four_ in high school, and I heard he's nearing _five_ now and he has to deal with _university!_"

"And you have your battle form?"

Her head shot up in surprise, and with no change forthcoming in the violet-haired woman, she rubbed a hand down her face. Just that they knew about it told her one thing. They had seen it. "The longer I'm around you people the more you scare me. Yes, I do."

"Good." With that, the snow thickened and started blowing in an arctic wind, prompting the freshman to start shivering even as Mizore stood unaffected. "Change. Now."

Fire wrapped around Noriko like a blanket, soon congealing into a vulpine form then further finessing into a feminine figure, revealing a demonic beauty with only flaming fur preserving her modesty and leaving pale skin etched with fine black tattoos open to inspection. They traveled around her navel and up the valley of her breasts between the trails of fire covering her, before branching out down her arms and up to her cheeks. One of Mizore's eyebrows arched. For a freshman, she had the beginnings of a stunning physique that would only improve as she got older. The snow under the blazing paws of the now bipedal Youko disappeared in the heat she sent off, but still her stoic opponent's expression showed no fear.

"What now?"

Mizore pointed a clawed hand at her. "Now I exhaust you. You shoot your fire as hot and as long as you can at my ice until you can't any longer. Then we stop, rest, and do it again. Begin."

The snowy wind chilled lower as the wall of icy blades jumped forward, expanding into two lanes that moved to envelop the Spirit Fox from all sides.

All Noriko could do was as she had been instructed.

It was a process that would be repeated many times over the coming weeks, but their evenings were theirs to enjoy, and the blue-eyed beauty had every intention of doing that. She had lost time to make up for.

.

V^^^V

.

A couple of days after that, Kurumu found herself cornered by her duet partner, quite literally. With both of her hands on the wall by either side of her head, Mizore gazed into the eyes of the trapped succubus with a look torn between lust and absolute gratitude.

Then she kissed her. _Hard_.

The charm mistress was left dazed and confused when the Snow Woman pulled away, a small smile on her pale lips.

"Thank you."

As she watched her walk away, Kurumu croaked, "You're welcome."

All she needed to do was figure out what she did.

…

A couple of days after _that_, Kurumu found herself cornered by Ruby, quite literally. In the same position as Mizore once was, her look too was torn between lust and absolute gratitude.

Then she hugged her. _Hard_.

The blue-haired bombshell was left aching and coughing when the witch pulled away, a bright smile upon her dark red lips.

"Thank you."

As she watched her walk away, Kurumu gasped out a, "You're welcome."

Now she _really_ needed to figure out what she did.

…

Only a day after that she found herself cornered by _Moka_, quite literally. Once more in the same position she had been in twice already, the other woman's look was just as equally torn.

Then she said, "I don't know if I want to hug you, kiss you, or both. For now, I'll stick with the hug."

One bone-creaking embrace later, the young enchantress was left pleased but puzzled. "Will you _please_ tell me what it's for? I have no idea what I've done!"

The pinkette's eyes glazed over as she shivered. "You've been teaching Tsukune how to give _massages_."

And then everything made sense. After all, she did so _love_ their…_lessons_.

That time her, "You're welcome," was said with more than a hint of pride.

.

V^^^V

.

Pride was something that Alexander Valentine had swallowed what seemed like so long ago, when in reality it had only been a week. He could be forgiven for losing track of time though, considering what that week had entailed.

From dawn to dusk, every day, he and his mother had been battling it out, and her teaching methods became increasingly brutal the longer they went on, or so it seemed to him anyway. Their only breaks had been to consume what blood they needed; no fine food or drink that might take up time, just blood. Alexander had been pushed to his limits then his limits had been pushed far past whatever he might have ever thought was the border of insanity. He had been forced to delve into every tactic he had ever been taught over the course of his whole life, every dirty trick he could ever use and any advantage the terrain might be able to give him, and even then Ivy destroyed him again and again. Just to make it even _more_ of a challenge, a sparkling silver cross now hung around his neck just as one did hers. Frankly, he couldn't really complain about it due to both his brother and Evangeline accepting rosaries of their own in a show of support. When he was _finally_ allowed to go to bed he couldn't even enjoy it, since he passed out the second he hit the mattress and didn't stir until he was thrown out of bed the next morning.

Basically, life sucked. On the plus side, he _was_ improving; just the other day he had nearly nicked his mother with his sword! Progress was slow in coming but that was expected, he would fight for it just like he swore he would. While he hurt, a _lot_, he had to admit the past week had been very fulfilling. It felt like he was actually _doing_ something that would matter in the long run, not coasting through life in a haze of debauchery. He couldn't even say he missed that phase; whenever he thought of it he would remember that horrible pain in his chest and know why he continued to develop himself. The constant training also kept his mind from pretty much anything else, which was why he hadn't anticipated what he was currently doing even though he should have.

He tried to discreetly wipe his sweaty hands on his pants as he, his brother, and his mother walked down the impressive halls of the Shuzen mansion. He knew the summons was a given considering what his task had been, but now that he found himself sympathizing with the two youngest sisters his nerves were shot to hell. Only his mother's calm gait and instructions beforehand kept him somewhat composed, but when he thought of who he would be meeting even those were put to the test.

The antechamber was opulent and imposing, meant to intimidate as much as impress, and he could definitely say it was working. Stepping into the main hall was like nothing else, however; when he was younger he thought it looked grand, only now was he able to fully appreciate what he was looking at. Or rather, he _would_ be able to fully appreciate it, had he been able to tear his eyes away from the man sitting in the throne-like chair at the end and the woman standing like a sculptor's masterpiece by his side.

Issa Shuzen sat nonchalantly, resting his cheek against his fist, and his very appearance screamed wealth and power. Despite the seemingly relaxed and semi-formal apparel, the Valentines knew each piece of the outfit was fit for a king and priced to match, while his eldest daughter stood in a Chinese dress of darkest blue, slit specifically to show off the miles of her firm legs. Inky tresses so like her father's teased the boundaries of her beautiful face, but even with the seal they knew she was wearing there remained two threads of silver dangling from her bangs. Her smile was as dangerous as it was seductive, just as her father's was both calculative and amused but framed by an immaculately trimmed goatee.

"What, you come and don't bring your mate _again_, Vincent-kun? I'm beginning to get the wrong idea behind your visits," Akuha Shuzen's lilting voice teased, and after what he had told them earlier Alexander wasn't surprised his brother winced slightly. Regret would do that do anyone.

He regained his cool easily enough. "Blood-mate now, actually."

The only sign she reacted at all was a small widening of her eyes, but she did react. "I suppose congratulations are in order, then. Miss Evangeline never struck me as the type to settle down, though I have to say you look quite striking when sealed."

It was true. With his long hair black as pitch and eyes a piercing orange that seemed to glow under the light, Vincent looked every bit as handsome as he did in his vampiric glory. He gave the customary nod of appreciation for the compliment. "My wife is a very picky person. She was just looking for the right one."

"Alas, something I myself have yet to find," Akuha lamented dramatically as she brought a hand to her heart.

_Yes, I'm sure you're just _broken_ inside,_ the eldest Valentine brother thought as he resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Just because she was terrifying didn't mean her theatrics were funny, let alone believable. Still, he said, "Time is a Vampire's friend. I'm sure it will happen eventually."

Smiling, she made her way to Alexander, prowling around him like a shark would it's next meal. "Mmh, you're not looking so bad yourself there, Xander. The rosary suits you well," she purred as she ran her fingers down his arm. She wasn't lying either. While his brother enjoyed having his hair long, Alex kept his in a happy medium that curved down his face like his mother's, which was fitting since his eyes had changed to her palest electric blue, though like Vincent his hair was jet black.

It took all his will not to shudder at her touch. She was by no means unskilled in whatever she chose to do; seduction one of them. "Thank you, Shuzen-sama."

She laughed merrily, low and captivating. "You should know that's my father, Xander_-kun_. Call me Akuha."

He tried to make his gulp as subtle as possible, but her fanged grin told him she had seen it. "I'll…try, Akuha-sama."

Her grin became just large enough to be seen as predatory. "Yes, that's _perfect_."

"Akuha, quit bothering our guests; you'll have plenty of time for that later," came the pleasant rumble of Issa Shuzen. Authority was thick in his bass tone regardless of the lighthearted demeanor it was delivered in, and his daughter inclined her head respectfully before stepping back to his side. He sat up smoothly, moving his elbows to his knees so he could support his chin on his hands yet still effectively stare them all down.

"Now then, Akuha tells me that young Alexander paid a visit to Youkai Academy and was hospitalized for his trouble. Your family was given its chance and you failed, yet you chose to go back with your brother." His tone was kept light, but somehow it felt like he was suffocating them with the mere _hint_ of his disapproval. It lasted only a second, then it was gone and he was smiling again. "But I of all people can appreciate ambition, and no doubt you wanted to salvage your pride. Judging by the lack of Moka's presence with you, only two possibilities come to me: either you left her at your home by her request, or you failed…_again_."

Ivy touched her sons' shoulders comfortingly before striding forward. "I'm afraid it was the latter. Let it be known the Valentine Clan is prepared to accept its responsibility and leave itself of your and the Elders' favor until such a time as you see it fit to bring us back."

An eyebrow quirked. "I didn't know you were aware of your son's actions."

"I wasn't," she replied honestly, "but my oldest went along with his plan knowing that, and even told your eldest of the next attempt. I would imagine they took that as permission, their knowledge of the rules notwithstanding. With both of my sons involved, claiming ignorance does me nothing."

Issa hummed thoughtfully. "True, very true. As I was told, he was simply trying to get his brother to own up to his mistakes, but so too can I understand Alexander's desire to preserve his pride. It doesn't change anything, but I can understand. Since you made no illusions about it I'll be lenient, but don't count on receiving anything of the same importance for a long time."

She bowed low, and her sons did the same. "Thank you, Shuzen-sama."

"I trust they are being punished appropriately?"

Alexander didn't even need to fake flinching when Isabella's gaze shot to him, and Vincent bowed lower when it was his turn.

He chuckled, though more than anything it just set them on edge. "I see. That's good, one cannot accept failure like this without penalty, but I'm saddened to see such a young Valentine cut off from so much at the beginning of his life." That was only a platitude and they all knew it, but it was necessary to keep up appearances.

Again, Alex flinched. By being cut off from the Elders' favor, and especially Issa Shuzen's, he had basically ensured the Valentines would be snubbed by any major vampire clan for the foreseeable future. No doubt their businesses would suffer as well seeing as so many major corporations were in fact owned by some of those clans, but thankfully they were largely self-sufficient. As it was, the only jobs he would be able to get would be within his family if he didn't want to start from scratch, and finding a mate would be all but impossible with it being specifically _his_ failure. That didn't bother him as much as he thought it would, probably because he didn't feel worthy of one. The wait would give him time to better himself until he could be wanted for who he was, even if he had plunged the Valentines back into obscurity for the moment. It was as his mother had said, honor could be restored, it would just take time.

The Dark Lord stood, casually swiping the walking stick leaning against his chair in the process, and walked to where the youngest vampire present kneeled. Standing over him, it was not a position anyone wanted to be in, and Alexander could feel the sweat trickling down his neck as he bore the weight of the powerful monster's stare.

"I know you're still coming into your power, and I know you have yet to wield the weapons your clan is known for, but I'm curious as to how you lost," he said gravely.

They knew this was going to be a question, and he had been prepared for it.

"I believe my brother informed Akuha-sama that I had already tried once and was going to try again. I know he told her I found out Moka-sama has taken a mate. Let me be the one to tell you the one your daughter claims to be her mate…is the one that can remove her seal," the younger man answered politely.

It was the only thing he hadn't been told before. They knew he had been told something _similar_ by Kahlua, but having it put so plainly and _certainly_ right in front of him struck the Dark Lord momentarily speechless while his hands turned white-knuckled on his cane, even as Akuha's self-satisfied smirk faltered. The information before had been vague; they only knew Moka _could_ be unsealed, now they knew just _who_ was doing it. "You're sure of this?"

It wasn't a question, it was a demand.

"She beat me within an inch of my life, Shuzen-sama. It's not exactly forgettable."

"Yes, that I can imagine," the Shuzen patriarch remarked dryly. "For bringing me confirmation of this, consider your sentence's duration lessened." That said, he swooped his cane upwards, smashing it into the bottom of Alex's chin and launching him into the air, where he brought it down heavily onto his chest and bashed him into the floor, heedless of the hacking coughs the young man issued. "_That_," he hissed menacingly, "was _my_ retribution for you _daring_ to assume more than one chance with _my_ daughter. Now get out of my sight."

Keeping the pain out of her eyes was hard for Isabella Valentine as she helped her son upright. She had anticipated it beforehand and told him he wasn't likely to escape the encounter unharmed, but that didn't change the fact that watching it being done had hurt. He had been merciful; she had no doubt that had the Dark Lord been unsealed that first strike would have killed Alexander without fail, and even now he had only delivered negligible damage. The real damage had been done invisibly, to their pride and prestige in the limitations placed on their clan for failing. It wasn't that he didn't expect some to fail, it was that they tried again despite that and failed again.

Akuha was as crafty as her father, and when Vincent had guiltily recounted his meeting with her to them earlier in the week, both he and Ivy could see what she had done in retrospect. She had never expressively given permission, nor had she stated she would pass along the information as a formal request to her father. She had simply documented his briefing and flirted about the topic, throwing off his analysis of the conclusion. She did everything _but_ give her consent, and used his inherent unease of being around her to keep him from specifically appealing to her father.

They had to give her credit for her wiles; she was as skilled with her words as she was with her fists to do that to someone as naturally unruffled and methodical as Vincent. If they couldn't see through her deception they deserved what they received, and while Isabella was loathe to admit it, she felt the same. A great deal of humiliation could have been avoided had her sons only come to her, but so too would a great deal of good have been missed. In the end, the pros outweighed the cons.

"Thank you for your time, milord," she acknowledged the dismissal graciously. Vincent moved to his younger brother's other side without a sound, and together they made to carry him from the hall.

"Wait," Akuha's voice cut through the thick atmosphere of their departure. When both oldest son and mother turned again to look at her, she regarded them curiously. "You learned nothing else?"

Vincent stared her down unflinchingly with a glare fitting for her deception, before ever so slightly nodding. As the silence stretched out and the tension grew, his murmur was every bit as loud as a shout when he said, "…She claims to be blood-bound. Tread softly."

With the judgment that had been handed to his family, based on deceit at that, the Cerberus-wielder felt entitled to take pleasure in the looks on their faces at that bolt from the blue. He was only glad they couldn't see his grin as he and Ivy removed their injured family member from the mansion. As they were driving away, he finally allowed himself to chuckle, which swiftly bloated into gut-wrenching guffaws, and the pale-eyed woman beside him slowly joined in.

Alexander, unsurprisingly, just groaned pathetically from his place laying on the backseat. He was in a tremendous amount of pain after all; unconsciousness would have been welcomed. Sadly for him the insane training he was going through had hardened him enough to fight through it. "I know…I deserved it…but still…too bad we…couldn't…bring a…camera."

The other two just laughed harder. "Maybe next time, little brother."

All things considered, they had come out quite well for what they had done.

It wasn't much of a plan, but when Vincent confessed his fallback scenario to the possible failure of their mission and what it entailed, Ivy had instantly known it had potential. He had only given Akuha enough information to incriminate Alexander, or so he had thought, but she made sure to berate him for even thinking such a thing was possible. It would have had far more potential had the eldest Shuzen daughter not been stringing him along the entire time, and basically set them up for disgrace. It was Vincent's fault for falling for it, but the past was the past. The future was the important thing now.

The plan was simple: cover the whole truth by revealing a lesser, but still momentous truth. Even the _claim_ of a blood-bond would put a damper on more physical attempts. Her sons were still getting hell for what they did while _knowing_ the second youngest Shuzen had made such as claim. Usually this translated into excruciating pain for Alex while in training, for Vincent it was whatever she could think of at the time, be it inane task or tedious request.

The truth was a powerful weapon, especially when used in degrees. So wrapped up were they in what they had been told, neither Issa or Akuha had even thought to ask if they had discovered the _name_ of Moka's blood-mate. The plan had been an overwhelming success, something all Valentines present would never forget just from the looks on the noble family's faces. No matter what the other vampires thought, _they_ would always know what had gone on behind those doors had been a victory for the lesser clan involved, and they were walking away with two more steps on the board already planned. They weren't the only ones to have their pride stung, and with certain avenues lost to them, what would come next should be more predictable. That was what Isabella hoped, at any rate.

Vincent was having similar thoughts, going from his rapidly sobering mood. "Are you sure about this?" he asked quietly.

Ivy patted her son's leg. "Yes. Your father and I owe them your lives."

"And you really think he would do that to them?" Who he was talking about was obvious to both of the other occupants of the vehicle, and again, her answer was in the affirmative.

"Yes, I do. If not him, _her_. For all of young Moka's power, they are _not_ invincible."

The rest of the ride was driven in foreboding silence, only one terrible question hovering above.

What if they were wrong?

.

V^^^V

.

Issa Shuzen sat again on his regal chair overlooking a hall that could hold most of Japan's population of vampires, deeply troubled. Akuha paced the floor in front of him with one arm over her stomach to support the other at the elbow, which held her chin in her hand as she frowned in concentration.

"…If she really is blood-bound, the Elders will never back any use of force on her, despite her place in the punishment," she said at last, though she was only voicing what they were both thinking.

"Do you think me _inept?_ I know that!" he snarled, and she flinched back as if struck. "To resort to such an extreme measure…"

"But do we dare call her bluff?" This was one area even she was hesitant in. While her father was on the Council of Elders and granted the title _Dark Lord_, not even he would dare try to coerce a decision from them against laws that had been in place for millennia. It had been tried before. "I was told the boy came from the Snow People…a blood-bond would be almost impossible to forge properly…"

Issa rubbed his forehead tiredly. "I know. But if I go against her directly and her bond proves true, not only would the Elders support her, they would dissolve her part in the punishment, and that would be _disastrous_. With Moka's luck the bond really has taken. To _think_, she found someone that could actually _remove_ the rosary!"

"Kahlua did say something to that effect, didn't she?" the eldest daughter put forth with a small amount of hesitation, hesitation that was justified when he glared at her.

"_Yes, _she _did_. Which was why you were supposed to cut them off when I heard she was paying a visit to that old fool in China. It's amazing what the difference of a few hours can make. If you had just caught them at the main house before they had time to move on…" He rubbed his forehead tiredly. "What's done is done. Why that idiotic priest would even go through all the trouble to send them there is—" He stopped abruptly, nearly jumping to his feet as his mind whirled. "The seal, of course! It was never meant to be removed so often! Something must have happened to it that he couldn't fix! If she didn't want to come back here, she would have to go to another seal master! But why? Why would she do that at all?"

He froze, and slowly, ever so slowly, a dark, maniacal smile that unnerved even Akuha drew itself on his face. "No, she wouldn't…that would be too perfect…it couldn't…" His voice was tinged with awe, practically laughing as he went over the scenarios in his head. "But why else…? That must be it. Oh you poor, silly little girl, you thought…" He couldn't even bring himself to finish.

"…Father…?"

"Hm?" he sounded, and when he looked at her he remembered he had been voicing his thoughts to an audience. "Oh, Akuha; I'm sorry, I forgot where I was for a second there. Not to worry, I believe I've just solved our problem. Since Moka seems so hell-bent on disobeying, I'll have to show her the hopelessness of her situation. If not one, then…the _other_…"

His ever-darkening tone sent chills through Akuha. She knew that tone, and it brought a delighted smile soaked with bloodlust to her lips. "Is there anything I can do, Father?"

Eight years ago had held the happiest days of her life, and she wasn't about to let what was going on ruin what she had built for herself since. She was disappointed when he shook his head, but when he explained as much of his reasoning as he was willing to part with to her, her previous smile came back with a vengeance.

"Enjoy what time you have left, little sister. You'll know where you belong soon enough," she whispered.

The Valentines were lucky they left when they did. Her laughter would have resonated in their nightmares for weeks to come.

.

V^^^V

.

In the minds of two freshman, 'nightmare' described what they had been going through for the past week quite well. Noriko and Isao were sprawled out under one of the many trees of Paradise, enjoying one of their rare rest sessions before they were thrown headfirst back into Hell. Sweat was beaded on every exposed surface of their skin as their chests fought for breath, which even Isao could admit looked rather attractive on his fiery companion despite his current situation. The burn in his body felt good in a way, though he really wanted a nap.

If he had thought the Newspaper Club was impressive before, he didn't know what he thought of them now. For the past six days they had fallen into a routine that he equally loved and hated. They were given the mornings to themselves, to work on any leftover summer schoolwork and such, and after lunch they met in the clubroom to be shown the process of editing a newspaper into existence. It was a surprisingly time-consuming process that the seasoned group had down to an art form and the two First Years were only slightly better than abysmal at, but even that had nothing on what they did after. From two until six they were in Paradise, four solid hours every day essentially getting their pride as monsters handed to them on silver platters. It was painfully obvious to them that though they had been trained by their families as the Youkai they were born into, the group that had now taken that burden upon themselves to further finesse had been through conflict they couldn't hope to imagine. Those four hours were more difficult than anything they had ever done in their lives, but simply a touch later and they were able to go to bed feeling stronger than the day before, and free of pain at that. It also allowed them to actually enjoy their evenings _before_ they collapsed into bed, yet with it, questions upon questions started building in their minds.

They knew Tsukune Aono was a Vampire, they had watched along with the rest of the school when a silver-haired woman fought a silver-haired man, each bearing fangs, red eyes, and enough power to level a forest with their bare hands. Nowhere in their mythos was a healing touch, or the other impossibilities Noriko had stared at from behind her dorm-room window for that matter. They weren't the only ones to notice this, and rumors were starting to circulate around campus, each one wilder than the next. They really didn't know what to believe, since the club had never claimed Tsukune to be anything but a regular Vampire.

With any luck those questions would be answered in time, their current concern was the group dynamic they were rapidly becoming a part of.

"So what she have you do today?" he asked when he could breathe normally again. Comparing tortures had become a routine for them, and an endless source of entertainment for him too. He made sure to keep all his complaints within the confines of his mind, else he earn unneeded ire. She, on the other hand, voiced her complaints openly and angrily, but most of her irritation was directed at herself for not being able to complete the challenges to her regular standards. Her Snow Woman teacher had earned her grudging respect, because no matter what she did she did it calmly, quickly, and with great precision. While she was openly pushing the younger girl's limits, she wasn't malicious in her intent otherwise Noriko was sure she would have died many, _many_ times over. The thought wasn't as comforting as it should have been.

She huffed. "Let's just say I got to find out how resilient ice clones can be when she's actively strengthening their integrity. Oh, and hitting moving targets suck."

"She can make clones of herself out of ice? That move?"

"She can make clones of _anyone_ out of ice, and they can do more than _move_," she admitted with a wince as she rubbed a particularly nasty bruise gaining ground on her arm. "And who were you with today?"

"Kokoa-sempai."

The simple answer earned another wince from the Youko. He didn't even need to say anything else. She had seen him practicing with Tsukune, and he was good, _very_ good even with a fake sword, but Kokoa was…Kokoa. She knew that under his damp yukata he was probably one big welt.

"I'm sorry." There was really nothing else she could say.

He chortled. "Thank you."

A companionable silence settled among them as they gave their weary bodies some much needed rest, watching the remaining group continue at a feverish pace they hadn't let up even once. Frankly, the club's skill and tenacity was downright frightening. Just thinking that they were only two years older than them, and in one case two years _younger_ than them, was a large serving of humble pie. They might not have considering themselves the most powerful Youkai on campus, but to know some outclassed them so indisputably was a bit hard to swallow, despite the many rumors and tales of their exploits. Having those same people offer to _instruct_ them was a suggestion immediately pounced upon, and after only a week of their torture—under the subtle title of _training_—they came to an astonishing conclusion.

"…You feel it too though, don't you?" she questioned as she sat up and stretched, popping bones back into place with a happy groan.

He wasn't going to pretend he didn't know what she meant. "Yeah. You noticed?"

Fire burst to life on her palm as her response, and while still orange, there was a very distinct blue tinge to the inner depth of her flame. That slight shift in tint may not seem like much to the untrained eye, but Isao could _feel_ the heat roiling off her hand, noticeably hotter than what it had been only half a dozen days ago.

"When he 'heals' us, it follows the natural process. It mends _and_ strengthens what we've injured, just like if we'd gone through the necessary days to recover. Mizore-sempai has forced me farther than I've ever been pushed or pushed myself, and if he keeps healing me…Isao-san, they…they really weren't kidding."

"They're going to get us as strong as they can as fast as they can, because they honestly expect something to happen," he stated plainly.

The Newspaper Club didn't think like regular students. They didn't worry excessively over trivial things like homework; as the freshman had found out, they had been done that for weeks. That may have seemed bizarre to anyone else, but as a member of the female dorm, Noriko distinctively remembered how much they had been practicing up until the other vampire debacle. It did make some sense for them to get everything that may have distracted them out of the way first. More than that however, was their mindset.

They were not only willing, they were preparing themselves to fight to the death against whomever or whatever was coming. Quite honestly, nothing else could explain the ferocity with which they fought. What they were doing wasn't training, it was far too insane for that, but it gained results faster than anything else, that they couldn't deny. Where normal students their age might do something similar to make themselves more attractive to the opposite gender, the journalistic group made no secret of their nigh familial bond, and the length they would go to preserve it.

Over the time they had spent together, sharing their mutual pain and speculating over their upperclassman had proven to be unexpectedly effective bonding agents, so at the very least the two freshman had learned to trust each other at their sides, though maybe not to the point of trusting the other with their backs just yet. They knew if they wanted to get anything like their mentors, that would need to happen sometime in the future, and even if they didn't want to, it would be nothing but beneficial if they did. The most glaring paradigm of that had been when they watched Mizore and Kurumu face off against Tsukune and Rei, and what happened after.

To trust another so completely, know them so intimately that they could respond without prompting to any threat to their partner's wellbeing and not even hinder what they were already doing was…incredible. Predictably, Rei and Tsukune had lost, though not for lack of trying. They simply didn't have the same amount of time put into their style as was visible in every action of the Black and White Duet. In a fit of curiosity, and in what came to be more unsettling than the battle of the two duo's, was when Moka had asked to replace Rei.

Vampire and Vampiress, sealed and unsealed respectively, fought with an ease not even the Familiar relationship could match. Rei was still developing, growing into her body, style, and _herself_. As close as they had become over their month-long excursion, it couldn't compare to nearly three years of deep friendship, anger, shy love, jealousy, tentative touches and heartache. When school ended it would be three whole years of learning everything they could over that time, and accepting it just the same when all was said and done. Despite having never formally tried it in advance, Tsukune and Moka put up a numbing performance against the original duet before they were forced to concede defeat. Moka because if she tried any harder she would do serious damage, and Tsukune because they had taken out the weaker link first, as much as he and Moka had tried to fight back. Seeing as they weren't actually trying to hurt each other, it had been a strictly physical match, no other powers involved, and again, experience had won out in the end. Of course, Mizore and Kurumu didn't consider it a real victory, but then again they had stopped caring about that a long time ago.

For Noriko and Isao, it showed just how profoundly the Newspaper Club had intertwined, and that continued as they kept swapping partners just to see how they fought together. The freshmen knew right then that they had to step up their game, and their readiness to learn from the more experienced students was paying dividends even they hadn't been prepared for.

"If this keeps up, I might really be able to get my third tail by the end of the year!" Noriko preened enthusiastically, and while he was happy with his own growth, Isao had to be the voice of reason.

"Remember, we'll have festival preparation to deal with when school starts back up though, so who knows how much longer we'll be able to have these sessions."

She waved the observation off. "That's only for the next two months, and yes, I realize we also have to establish our presence in the school."

"Ruby-sensei is the headmaster's secretary, and everyone except Kokoa-senpai is going to have their Third Year finals to deal with," he noted pragmatically, and she slumped.

"I know that's true, but…!"

He sighed. "Besides, if you make a big deal out of it, Akashiya-sama might stop them altogether."

The blond hoped he didn't see her shudder. Of all the new people they had met and the gradual warmth that was slowly being shown to them under Tsukune's direction, Moka Akashiya was still every bit as intimidating as she was that first day. The two had felt like idiots for not realizing who the silver-haired woman was sooner, but it soon became vastly apparent that the red-eyed beauty hadn't forgotten her initial hostility towards the fair-haired spirit fox. As a Youko, in the beginning Noriko did have a brief moment of unholy irritation that she apparently wasn't worth the attention of the unsealed vampiress, but as if sensing her thoughts, Moka cast a challenging glare at the younger student with a small measure of her true power behind it. Needless to say she didn't dare think anything of the sort again, especially when she thought of the Youko the Newspaper Club had previously dealt with, one at least twice as powerful as her.

Moka was the one person neither had dealt with personally over their exercises, but according to Kurumu that wasn't a surprise. Only one person had really been 'trained' by Moka, and that was Tsukune. Kokoa had only recently begun a similar style of instruction, and they certainly didn't envy her. Now that wasn't to say that her friends didn't take some of her ideas to heart, or if she hadn't been the one to give them in the first place, since there were times they felt like their limbs were going to fall off, but she had never coached either of them on a one-on-one basis. On a related note, she was also the only one that hadn't allowed them to address her by her first name, even with the correct suffix applied, and while her sealed form was content with 'senpai', Inner Moka would have nothing but complete respect. Neither minded giving it to her, considering the group's accomplishments and her strength. It galled the vixen, for sure, but the woman was something to look up to, as much as she hated to admit it.

Still, Isao's argument had merit. "I can't disagree with that," she conceded, "but when I see how powerful they all are…it's…"

"Inspiring," the young teen beside her murmured.

While not the exact word she would have used, she found it much more fitting. The boy was lazy and talked as little as he possibly could, but his words were always chosen precisely, just like how he fought. It was strange how he could move so little and yet so much at the same time, a perfect conservation of motion and energy all the while restraining none of the force. He was a paradox, but not entirely unlikeable. Just that he would subject himself to the hell they were going through was proof enough he _could_ work when he had to—or more accurately, didn't have a choice—and she would make sure he had plenty of reason to work when it was only the two of them in charge.

"Yes, inspiring works well, doesn't it?" Her gaze shifted to the twirling masses that were their instructors fighting each other, and focused specifically on the one trailing long silver hair behind her movements. "I want to be as strong as she is. Just look at her, she's—"

"Hot," her co-leader interjected smoothly, as he too took in what she was looking at.

The roll of her eyes as done by a superior looking down on a commoner was executed perfectly, though the image was slightly ruined by her unkempt state. "So you do have some testosterone hidden under all that lethargy," she mocked with a carefully crafted smirk. "Should I be worried for our mentor's virtue?"

It was a statement so utterly ridiculous he could only stare at her for a second before breaking out into loud, boisterous laughter. Being that everything he did, right down to his fighting style, was measured in the extreme, Noriko was caught unprepared for the assault on her eardrums, but other than the volume it was quite nice. When he finished wiping away the tears that had sprung from his merriment, he chuckled again. "Thank you, I'd forgotten I'm of the male persuasion. That means I can do this without worrying."

Her pondering on what he meant only lasted a moment, as he soon pulled his arms from his sleeves and pushed his sweaty yukata's top down to hang from its obi, allowing his pale chest some much needed sunlight. A fair eyebrow quirked with interest, but otherwise she remained unaffected. Obviously his swordplay wasn't something he had picked up recently, if his musculature was anything to judge by. It wasn't much, but he had clear definition and a lack of any noticeable body fat, though like she had thought there was a fair bit of swelling in places and bruising to match. She certainly could have done worse for a fellow leader, at least in the eye-candy department. She was also pretty peeved she couldn't do as he had; her clothes were practically sticking to her.

"Ah, much better," he sighed with a small twitch of his lips, having likely noticed the mild glare being leveled at him. "As for your other comment, I have no desire to be beaten to death with my own fists, so I think Akashiya-sama's 'virtue' is safe where it is. Tsukune-senpai complements her nicely."

She hummed her amusement. "I suppose. Watching them spar I never know if she's trying to tear _him_ apart, or tear his _clothes_ apart."

Isao went into a mild coughing fit, which for him was as good as choking on his own mirth. "You noticed that too?"

"If the kiss she gives him every time that rosary gets removed wasn't proof enough, I'm a woman too; I can tell." So far, that had been the only thing she had seen that connected the pale vampiress to her sealed equivalent, but it _did_ show that beneath her distrust and austerity, the new Moka they had been introduced to earlier that week wasn't totally heartless. She was just far, far more guarded. In that, Noriko felt an odd sort of kinship with the powerful Youkai, and that above all strengthened her resolve to one day get to her level. That meant continuing their lessons, no matter how her pride suffered in the process. Besides, only a few people were actually seeing her like she was, to everyone else she was the same as always. It was a small enough sacrifice to see the look on her family's faces, especially Kuyou's. She didn't know what Isao's home situation was like, but nonetheless he was with her too, and getting better every day. With their _unique_ training situation, they were both certain that they were receiving a much larger payout for their efforts than the six days would have normally implied. The scary thing was, so was the Newspaper Club, as they could tell even as they looked for the signs Noriko had mentioned while Tsukune and Moka exchanged blows.

"She's got it bad," the brown-haired teen declared before the silence stretched any further.

The Youko scoffed with a flip of her hair. "Oh you know that, do you?"

"You don't agree?"

"I agree, but to paraphrase a realist: 'There are two things a man will always believe about a woman; one, that she is weak, and two, that she finds him attractive.'"

He put his hand over his heart in mock pain. "Ouch. As a representative for my gender, I feel the need to point out I wasn't talking about myself in that instance."

She smirked proudly. "Did I hit a nerve? That was an awful lot of words for you."

He shook his head with a muttered, "Troublesome." Wiping off some imaginary dirt from his clammy skin, he stood and stretched, which did some interesting things to the muscles of his torso that she couldn't help but take in. After grabbing his bokken, a corner of his lips curled up as he extended a hand to his seated accomplice. She rolled her eyes again, but accepted the help to her feet nonetheless. It was as they were walking back to their trainers that he looked at her, and the mischief in his eyes made her tense instinctively. "So just to get this straight then, you _weren't_ just checking me out?"

Caught red-handed, she fought hard to keep heat as hot as what she controlled out of her cheeks. Recovering quickly, she made a production of slowly looking him up and down, and showed just enough teeth in her smile to seem threatening when she reached his eyes. "Now I was."

To her surprise, that curl to his lips widened ever so slightly as he turned to walk away.

"Good to know. I think I'm developing a thing for blondes too."

She was left staring soundlessly at his back, or was until she realized she had been outdone at her own game.

_Oooh, just you wait!_

Though she didn't know it, a smile had formed on her face. The next term was going to be fun.

.

V^^^V

.

Ruby Toujou was virtually skipping down the halls of the school, a bright smile plastered on her face. She had changed her shirt from what she usually wore, opting instead for a pink v-neck torn in horizontal stripes down her sides, revealing the white top underneath. She would have gone without the undershirt in truth, but she was a member of the faculty and thus, couldn't be showing _too_ much skin, even though technically it was still summer vacation. The change of her norm was needed because while she liked her old shirt, she really, _really_ liked being able to see the tangled black vines wrapped around her neck in every reflective surface she could find.

There was only a couple of days left before term resumed and the frantic preparation for the school festival would begin, not to mention the renewed stress of year-end examinations. Her workload would increase, but she couldn't bring herself to care. Things were going well.

Training with Rei had been a surprise, but she brought things to light neither she or Yukari had thought of before—much to their annoyance—and they were both close to grasping the concept she was trying to teach them. If they could get it to work, they would finally have something reliable to fall back on if an enemy got too close. The plans for their teleportation talismans were coming along nicely, and there was just a few kinks they needed to work out before they could enchant them. Lastly, and most importantly, she and Tsukune had managed to steal away a few private moments between just them, and he was learning how to give _massages!_ She had made sure to thank Kurumu profusely for that.

Speaking of the succubus, her mood might have also had something to do with the wonderful experience that had been forced into her dreams the night before. Tsukune was certainly growing bolder under their combined _tutoring_. Not that she minded one teeny tiny bit. Far from it.

She giggled as she opened the door to the imposing office of the school's headmaster. "Good morning, Master! What do you want me to do to…day…?" Her voice, and her good mood, seemed to flee the second she laid eyes on the Exorcist.

He was holding a letter in his hand, one that was being crumpled in an ever-tightening grip the longer he read. Ruby had only ever known a few expressions on her employer's face: he had his default, sarcastic amusement, smug superiority, and very, very rarely, the occasional surprise. None of those were present. This was irritation. This was outright _anger_. His brow was furrowed, his jaw was set, and she was sure that if the paper he was holding had sentience it would be running for its godforsaken life under his glare.

"Ma…Master?" she hesitantly tried again.

He sucked in a harsh breath through his teeth and exhaled heavily, amazingly removing most traces of his former annoyance from his face as he did. Most, but not all. **"I have an urgent delivery for you to make, Ruby-chan**," he said seriously, his voice nearly vibrating with restrained emotion. **"Don't come back until you've dealt with the fallout, no matter how long it takes."**

She gulped. "M-Master, what is it?"

He just shook his head at her. **"Plausible deniability. It's…better if you don't know beforehand. I did all I could."** He handed her two envelopes, and her stomach turned to ice when she saw the names they were addressed to, personalized with a kiss made from blue lipstick. She cast pleading eyes on him, but he simply shook his head once more and motioned to the door.

Her feet felt like lead the closer she got to the dormitory, and try as she might she couldn't stop her hands from shaking. She knew, she could feel it in her _bones_ that she was going to be the harbinger of a life's apocalypse. When she reached the door it was like her heart was being twisted in her chest, but she knew why she had been asked. The door opened, and she bit back a sob when she saw members of her family turn to see who had arrived. Tsukune and Kurumu were currently still in the succubus' room recovering from a night of passion, but everyone else was in hers, even Rei and Yukari. It looked like she had interrupted Yukari explaining what they had written out so far for their talismans, defining the seals used and what they could do individually.

Concern was the only thing they showed when they saw her.

"Ruby! Are you alright? What's wrong? Didn't you just leave for work?" Moka asked in rapid succession, already to her feet and leading the sickly pale woman back into her room.

She couldn't speak. She could barely move. Still, she put one letter in front of Kokoa, and robotically extended the other towards Moka.

Sufficiently unnerved, not even the prospect of mail made them eager to pick up the envelopes, and when they saw the lipstick kiss they both went whiter than ghosts. Kokoa dropped hers like she had been burned, and Moka lost all strength in her legs and fell to her knees. The redhead shot to her sister's side like a bullet, and forced down a growl when she saw hers was similarly marked.

"Together?" she inquired softly, and gesturing to the letter both now held. Hers could wait, there was a good chance Moka's was worse. Her sibling could only nod, and with trembling fingers the content was removed and opened, revealing handwriting they knew all too well.

Fear. That was the first thing both Inner and Outer Moka felt as they read. Fear turned to disbelief, then to shock, then to numb horror. Air was getting harder to take into her lungs, all she could see was her life crashing down around her, told in smug detail by the writing in front of her. What could she do? She had been checkmated. Of all the routes that could have been taken, why hadn't she anticipated this one? What options were available to her? What was left? Her mind was a maelstrom of questions barely cohesive in her terror; tears were the only answer she could come to. It felt like she was going to fall apart at the seams and there was nothing to stop it.

That was when the door was nearly ripped from its hinges, and while she vaguely heard a voice call her name, she didn't truly understand it until a pair of familiar, strong arms had wrapped around her. Tsukune. She was with Tsukune. He was holding her, taking in the shaking of her body, gently stroking her hair, and had buried his nose into the candy-colored locks to whisper calming words. He had no idea what she had just read, no clue of what had happened, but he knew she was distraught and that was all the reason he needed to be the rock by her side, she could feel it. She just cried harder. He didn't deserve this, _they_ didn't deserve this! It wasn't fair!

"Moka, what happened? What's wrong?" he asked tenderly as he tried to keep the worry out of his voice. He and Kurumu had just been getting ready for the day when he had been hit with the worst array of emotions possible, and they all centered around fear; _Moka's_ fear. He had barely pulled his pants on before he was off running, Kurumu not far behind.

She sniffled hard, trying desperately to rein herself back into control. "Ts-Tsukune, my…m-m-my tuition…I've…I've been p-p-pulled out of s-school." That hard-earned control shattered and she dissolved back into tears, and her mate felt his blood freeze in his veins.

"It's true," Kokoa whispered, her tone dead. "Her tuition for next term has been returned after argument from our family, and in case she tried anything they made sure she's been deemed prematurely ineligible for the orphan's scholarship by the school board." It was mechanical; impassive, like she was reading from a script. She feared if she added any inflection at all she would break down just like her sister. "Her bank account has been frozen and her allowance cut off. That means no money for blood-bags, herbal tablets…rent, fake identification if she tried to run; that kind of thing. If she tries to get help from her friends or their families they will be destroyed; financially, physically, whatever it takes. She's been cut off and told to come home immediately."

The urge to throw up was quickly rising in the young man, and his fear was rising just as fast. Moka was going to be taken away from him. Moka was going to be taken from him and there was nothing he could do about it. This wasn't an enemy he could combat with his fists, this was an invisible enemy, one that hit deeper and harder than any punch. This enemy ran the world. Money. Maybe if they had been given some notice before summer and every single one of them had gotten jobs for the month-and-a-half break, they _might_ have been able to scrounge up enough for one semester. Instead, they had been preparing for a completely different fight while their opposition bided their time, waited until the last possible moment to spring it on them so they could do _nothing_.

He was useless. Everything he had done, all he had worked for, in the end he was just as useless as he had been in the past!

"We could…we could hide!" he brainstormed frantically. "You could hide in Paradise! There's plenty of blood for me there so you can keep feeding from me, and the pool is a reusable source of safe water to bathe in! We can put all your stuff in our cave; remodel it even! We have to be able to do _something!_"

Moka chuckled cynically, her tears now hiccups in the background as she wiped at her nose and burrowed her head into his chest. "A gilded prison. That man must know of Paradise, and if nothing happened and he couldn't find me, he'd eventually figure out where I went. He might even decide to leave me there for a few decades, let me stew in my failure. No money, no education; I'd be a sitting duck."

Tsukune was forced to swallow the bile in his throat. It was happening again. He was going to be useless _again!_

Everyone saw the gem in his rosary gleam, but what they didn't know was that Kurumu had basically siphoned all of his excess energy during their tryst that night. He looked fine, he may even feel fine, but right then he was as weak as his seal made him.

Then his eyes met Mizore's…and his stomach lurched. He barely made it to Ruby's wastebasket before he lost what he had eaten over the past few days.

_Oh god. Oh god oh god oh god._

Mizore.

Money.

He then lost what he had eaten over the past week.

He was eighteen. _They_ were eighteen! He didn't have a job lined up, who knew what his grades looked like so who knew what kind of university he could get into, and Mizore _needed_ to start having children soon or she _wouldn't have the chance!_ And he _wanted_ children with her!

But he was _eighteen!_ They didn't have the money! Where were they going to live, how were they going to pay for it? His parents weren't rich; they were well off enough to afford a comfortable home and not a cramped apartment, with enough left to send him to an expensive boarding school and still pay the bills, but he couldn't ask them for _this_.

The mafia wasn't an option, even if the Wong family liked them for what they had done in the Past. Dealing with Fairy Tale had been mostly repayment for fixing Moka's rosary, not that they wouldn't have dealt with them anyway. He didn't want to get into debt with any yakuza organization, even if they were probably one of the few things that could hold off the promised threats from the Shuzen family. He was already associated with the Underground in the rumors of certain circles, but asking for money from the mafia was the _last_ thing he wanted to do. That he knew them or nor didn't matter. He didn't like the fact that they were their best bet to beat what had been done to Moka. It had been hard enough getting Fong-Fong and Ling-Ling to go back to China after all was said and done, he didn't want to give them reason to come back and resume their 'recruitment' drives. They were friends, but he couldn't count on them to not have ulterior motives. Why was he even _considering_ the yakuza?

Panic was encroaching on him fast. He was useless. He was going to be a useless husband, a useless father. Why couldn't he do anything _right?_

They were all staring at him now, far past worried at the cold sweat on his body, the unhealthy pallor of his skin, the unfocused, near crazed look in his eyes. Moka could feel everything he was going through with such perfect clarity it was clear how strong it was for _him_, and in that moment she was more scared than she had ever been, in spite of the life sentence that was now crumpled in her hand.

"Tsukune! Tsukune calm down, it's alright, it's going to be alright," Kurumu soothed quickly. The room was in chaos. Moka and Kokoa were distressed messes, the others were varied between worry and fright, and Tsukune seemed to have thought up something new that troubled him even more than all that and was swiftly approaching hysterical.

Oh how he wanted to believe her words, but he couldn't! Under normal circumstances he wouldn't have said what he did, but panic had a tight grip and it wasn't letting him go. "Alright?" he laughed feverishly. "How? _How_ is this going to be alright? We're STUDENTS! I've been spending so much time training…I…I did my homework but I only did enough to get my homework _done!_ Who cares if I can crush cars if I can't get into a good school! I…I don't have anything planned…no school…no job…what the hell is wrong with me! Family? How are we supposed to be a family when I've had my head stuck in the clouds! Moka's broke! Yukari's a prodigy and a scholarship shoo-in but she's_ thirteen!_ Ruby has a job but _that's_ not going to be enough, and I don't have any money! And M-Mizore…Mizore wants kids…_deserves_ kids, and I'm…a-and I-I'm…"

It was stupid, it was selfish, it was damn near heartless, but Tsukune did the only thing his frenetic brain would agree to.

He ran.

The whole dorm creaked as he cleared the railing, when from the mildly breezy day a great wind crashed like a tsunami against its side. In the time it took them to blink, he was gone. Overwhelmed, Moka started crying again, and no one knew who to go to first. She solved that problem for them by struggling to her feet and rushing out after him, which sparked a mass exodus following her.

There was only one place he would go, even if that place had even more space for him to hide in than the academy. Regardless, she would find him, she had to. She knew why he had run away, probably better than he did himself. It was actually hard to feel anything of her own in the face of his jumbled emotions, which spoke volumes considering how weak their bond was.

When the true depth of his alarm had hit her it was like a bucket of ice water to her once so turbulent mind, and with his frightened tirade she was able to really comprehend the reason for it. It's amazing how fast one can calm when their mind has something more pressing to worry about. For once it had been Tsukune to almost instantly latch on to the larger picture. Both she and her inner self had thought only of the direct consequences and what it meant for her; Tsukune on the other hand had thought of what it meant for _them_. He hadn't thought of it like she was facing it by herself, he had thought of what it could mean for _all_ of them. Then he had taken the problem and expanded it, took it past simply the Present and thought of what a similar situation could mean for them in the _Future._ Granted, in doing that he had skimmed over the current crisis, but his heart was in the right place. _That_ she could feel intimately.

He was hurting, they all were, but it was the differences in their pain that made her quicken her pace. She had never been more thankful for the strange emotional connection their blood-bond gave them. There could be no confusion between them when it came to underlying intentions; if one felt it strong enough, so would the other. She was scared, she wouldn't deny that, but he shared in every bit of her fear, if not more. A lot more. The disparity came in the form of what _else_ he was going through.

_Shame_.

He felt helpless. He was utterly ashamed there was no way for him to help his family when they needed him most. He had done so much, tried so hard, and then been shown that for all his work, he still couldn't do anything. Disgust, anger, all directed inward, and the shame of it made him run away.

It was a chilling wake-up call to her befuddled senses. This was exactly what her father and sister desired; they wanted them fragmented, they wanted them to hurt each other. They wanted to destroy them mentally, destroy their relationship and their allies, before they came in for the kill. The sad thing was, she knew if they didn't have their bond, it would have worked. Tsukune's words would have hurt her, hurt that he couldn't understand what she was going through and focused on himself. But that wasn't it, thanks to their connection they were both able to know _exactly_ what the other was feeling if it was strong enough, and she knew he had felt every drop of her sorrow. So too was she able to feel firsthand the pain he was experiencing, the consuming love he had for them that only intensified the agony of realizing that their family, their whole family, could be crippled so easily and he had thought of nothing to try and prevent it before. It woke her up. Alone, they were strong. Together, they were invincible. It had always been that way.

She just needed to remind him the burden wasn't only his. If they wanted to be a true family they needed to face this the same way they had faced everything else, even if it seemed hopeless, even if they had no idea what to do. They would face it together, so even if the end came, at least they were by each other's side.

And so the tears continued to fall as she rushed to Paradise's doorway.

…

Tsukune ran through the landscape of the different dimension, his third home it seemed, with the wind at his back and a scream on his lips. He didn't care that the scenery was but a blur around him, he didn't even care that his feet had hardly hit the ground since he jumped off the tallest floor of the women's dorm, all he cared about was doing something, _anything_ to get his mind off his failure. Monsters respected strength, it was the truth that sometimes force _was_ the best option available, but he had forgotten the most _important_ truth, one he had known even as a human! _Everyone_ respected wealth.

He had a family, a wonderful, incredible family that he loved with all his heart and soul, but their weakness had never stood out so much before. All but _one_ of them was still in _school!_

For all his humility, kindness, and former cowardice, Tsukune Aono was a man before he was a Vampire. For every situation he and his friends had been put in, all the pain they had gone through, only those closest to him would be able to list the amount of times he had actually cried. There had been times he had lost hope, times he had been hurt both physically and emotionally, but only very rarely had tears truly fallen from his eyes. When Moka had initially rejected him was one. Now was another.

He screamed as he lashed out at the forestry around him, a roar of hurt and rage that came from deep within and went to the highest octaves he was capable of creating. It echoed for miles, not that he noticed, and warned every endangered Youkai that the predator that had stalked them under cover of darkness, hunted them during the blazing daylight hours, was _mad_. If that didn't give him a wide enough berth, the mass destruction that soon followed did. He screamed spells in languages he didn't even understand and had only been taught their effects, from regular Latin as when he had started to the ancient Greek Ruby and Yukari had only begun to cover. He screamed as clouds and lightning thundered in the sky above, yelled as ice from his hands and powers he had only started to explore devastated the background, howled as earth and wind trembled and crushed, shrieked in absolute despair because he knew no matter what he did here it was making no one feel better, not even him. What it came down to was he had run from his family when they needed him, all because he couldn't accept how useless he was to them. He was _worse_ than useless!

It didn't take long for him to tire since he had so willingly given his succubus most of his energy the night before, and when that happened he let out one last keening wail before collapsing to his knees and crying in earnest, where none of his family could see him.

That was how they found him, kneeling in the middle of a devastated environment and crying his heart out. As the large silver dragon that had carried them settled to the broken terrain, Moka was already sliding down her side. She hit the ground at a run and gathered her broken mate into her arms, and he responded instantly by enveloping her with his own.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, Moka I'm so sorry," he sobbed into her shoulder, repeating the words over and over and changed to match every member of their family that joined the embrace, even Kokoa. This time, no one noticed the rosary gleam. He told them he was sorry for running, he was sorry for not being the friend, the mate, the husband he should have been, but before he could go on he was silenced by Moka's insistent kiss.

"You're forgiven, Tsukune, just please, please don't scare us like that again," she whispered through renewed tears, while her inner self did the same.

"We'll get through this, just like we've gotten through everything else," Ruby added.

For Kurumu, their heart, there was only one thing to say: "Together."

He coughed a rough laugh. Hadn't he once told Moka the same thing, back when Alexander had first come and been defeated? She had felt the same way, and he hadn't taken his own advice. "Together," he agreed hoarsely.

They bundled together, tighter than before. They wouldn't let this break them apart.

Somehow, someway, they would figure out what to do, but they had very little time to do it.

Moka was going to stay at Youkai Academy.

Even if they had to go to the yakuza.

...

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**Author's Notes (always recommended to read):** You know, I _was_ hoping for more reviews last time, but honestly I can't complain because you guys simply blew my mind with their quality. As for Ectanoid, YOU I could rant and rave to until my fingers bleed about some of the things you said, but most of my arguments were already made for me, and made _well_, in most of the reviews for last chapter. The only thing I'll point out is what I felt was weirdest thing you could have mentioned. The hair. News flash, you're reading a story based on a _manga_, in which natural hair colors aren't limited to shades of blonde, brown, black, red, and, as we age, white. Get over it! And quite frankly, I'm _insulted_ you think I don't plan out what I write. My writing time is limited, so it takes me longer than some people to release updates, but I've always had an idea of where I'm going and what I'm going to do to get there. Thanks.

But on to happier things. Again, I was positively blown away by the thought and care taken to write some of the reviews I was given. You guys…you're the ones that make this worthwhile, and I'll admit I did a little happy dance during more than one of them. One of the more notable ones for me was romancejunky's which included, _"As to anyone who complains about the story thus far I believe they truly do not understand as to how much detail you are going into than other authors that I have read stories from."_

I'm not writing a story in a chapter. You're not going to get all the information right away. Sure, you'll have questions, but just because you don't understand it yet doesn't make it a plot-hole, especially with this chapter since I'm beginning to show how I've diverged from canon. As I've mentioned before, Moka's rosary was fixed without any trouble, but the Wong's knew someone was likely to follow them and they left before Akuha ever got there. As for Akuha herself, I've changed her personality some and aged her appearance, because come on, that doesn't make any sense. This is a divergence fic from the time they get to the Wong's on. More changes to come.

The one that stood out the most in my mind was Vegeta the 3rd when they said, _"The point being that this is such an amazing story. One that Tsukune reasonably becomes stronger, becomes more confident with his body change, and grows closer to his little family. So close it can basically be called a polyamory. Mizore, Kurumu, Yukari, Ruby, Rei and the Mokas all grew close over the course of the story and realized they're not just complete with one man, but complete with each other."_

YES! THANK YOU, THANK YOU, _THANK YOU!_ That's _exactly_ the point I was trying to make! Complete…with _each other_. Polyamory, not polygamy. (And just to clarify, no this doesn't mean they'll start ripping each other's clothes off. Tsukune's still the lynchpin, but their affection is growing past simple friendship and has started to edge past sisterhood in places. They're simply becoming more comfortable with each other as a whole.) That review made my week.

Yes, I'm sorry to some of you, but that does mean from time to time (like again in this chapter for a very, very small bit) there will be small elements of yuri, but I'm trying to make them very muted while still getting the point across. If that's too much, I understand if you don't want to read any more, just please don't comment on it.

I hope I did well on the more emotional parts of this chapter, and I tried to make sure no one had too many arguments against what happens. Remember, their bond is _emotional_, and there would be no way to hold those back during what happened. In my experience a man's dignity is even more important than his pride (which is why I'll never read a few of the stories in this section because of the blatant…yeah, I won't get into that) and both of those were wounded. Even Tsukune, kind as he is, probably wouldn't want the women he loves to see him break down.

Well, I'm hoping for more reviews this time, but I'm not complaining, you guys more than made up for numbers with the thoughtfulness and encouragement you gave me last time. Quality over quantity, as they say.

Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

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**Outtake Theatre**

**What happened on the way to Paradise with Isao and Noriko…**

The Newspaper Club walked along a path they knew well, leading the two confused freshman along behind them.

"Behold, the place we'll be training you…!" Ruby said dramatically as she flourished her arm towards the large stone door to Paradise.

Isao said what both of them were thinking.

"Oh my God a giant rock!"

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…

BWAHAHAHAHAHA! I'm sorry, I just had to put that in there. Internet cake to however knows where that came from. (The cake is a lie, lol!)

Anyways, that's all. See you next time.

Sabr.


	25. Never Meddle In The Affairs of Dragons

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Rosario+Vampire, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story. Simple enough, ne? Just don't copy from this story and we're all good!

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**Never Meddle In The Affairs Of Dragons**

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Tenmei Mikogami, the Exorcist, famed headmaster of Youkai Academy, seal master, and revered Dark Lord, found himself staring at the same line on the paperwork he had been trying to fill out for the twentieth time that day. Not surprising really, he was far too preoccupied to really focus on it as it was. Maybe he should have taken the same advice he gave Ruby. It was now late afternoon and he had gotten very little done aside from his thoughts. For all his titles, his long life, and accomplishments, politics was still every bit as frustrating as it was hundreds of years ago.

The school board had completely blindsided him, and the most infuriating thing was it had all been done perfectly within regulations! He may be the board chairman, but as such it was his job to pass all motions voted through and keep relative peace during the proceedings, not shoot down those that weren't to his liking. Democratic process was a pain sometimes. The board had been approached with an appeal entirely legal, and they had no reason to deny the Shuzens their request. After all, it was _his_ daughters at school; he could pull them out if he wanted. If they had been abandoned it would be another story; Youkai Academy had funds in place to ensure all monsters would be provided for if they had no family to do so, but that wasn't the case. Their family had merely pulled them out, and for vampires that was nothing unusual. They were immortal beings, prone to educate at home rather than sully themselves with the masses. The board considered it a privilege _two_ of the Shuzen sisters had enrolled, even if they hadn't completed their full terms.

That he had been blocked from the entire progression however, and not even able to give his students any kind of warning, stunk of premeditation. It wouldn't be hard for the Shuzens to argue conflict of interest, as there were plenty of recorded cases where the Newspaper Club had been allowed leniency, and just as many where it could be inferred he had used them as his hands in certain situations. Now that had come back to haunt him, and naturally it was Issa Shuzen who had taken advantage of it.

He couldn't offer them jobs because technically they hadn't graduated, and if he paid them money from his own pocket that would be showing undue favoritism and basically outright confirming the board's decision to keep him from the proceedings, not to mention it wasn't his place to pay their tuition when their family had already withdrawn it. If only someone else offered up the money, then he could act as legal counsel as the school's headmaster to keep them enrolled. Better yet, if _they_ were able to get the funds themselves. Taking things from there wouldn't be too hard. Other than that, his hands were tied.

His musings were cut short when the heavy double-doors to his office were explosively blown inwards, slamming none too gently into their respective walls. Were he anyone else he may have flinched, but since he didn't he was left staring unimpeded into two pools of burning quicksilver. The bronze-skinned teen standing in his entryway looked mad enough to spit hot coals, which, incidentally, she was very near to actually doing. The pearly teeth held in her sneer were glowing orange with restrained flame, and he noted idly that the hands clenched at her sides were sporting lengthy talons eager to rip into flesh. The ridge of her brow had turned a scaly silver, as had the line of her jaw, cheekbones, and either side of her neck, indicating the change had happened to more than what he could see. He had honestly expected this response, the only question had been who would be the one to do it.

**"Why hello, Rei-chan. I would say good afternoon, but it hasn't been a very good day, now has it?"** His normal good-natured wit was filled with rhetorical self-depreciation, but her scowl only deepened.

In just a few long strides she was in front of his desk and had slammed a hand down on the ancient wood hard enough to make it creak audibly. "Do not toy with me, riddle-maker! 'Tis no time for jest!" she snarled, and every time her mouth opened, sparks jumped from the depths of her throat.

The reason for her visit was simple: her treasures were contemplating going to the _yakuza_. She remembered the word from Tsukune's explanations as he went over his life with her in their cave, what seemed like years ago now. There was no way she was going to allow that; _no one_ would have anything to hang over her head, she would be in _no one's_ debt, especially not a group that had a history of using such a thing to get what they wanted no matter what. Tsukune was her partner; the one that put her first whenever she needed anything; the one that had cared and continued to care for her; the one that respected and trusted her. She could do no less than the same for him, and she would _not_ allow anyone a hold over him. That her Tsukki was even _considering_ doing that told her the severity of the situation they found themselves in, and she hadn't waited around to hear the counterarguments. She had a job to do.

"When last I was in his presence, Tsukki was putting forth the suggestion of means most foul! Lacking resources, he would rely on those who feed on the desperation of others, trafficking favors for servitude! Are you not a purported 'Dark Lord'? Are you not the leader of this institution? You mean to profess to my very face you could do _nothing_ when this quandary came to your attention?"

The air of the office was rapidly warming with every angry breath she took, the threat clear, and he narrowed his ominous eyes. **"Not without significant consequences for the school. If I damned the cost, yes, there are a few things I could do, but what would happen after I did? The school could face legal action as, as you said, I am its headmaster, and if not legal action, physical action by those who would first choose to follow proper channels. Vampires are not known for clemency, and should they be rebuffed by me personally for two children of whom might as well be their royalty, the school would earn eternal enemies. Those enemies have spent lifetimes building wealth and influence in both worlds, and wouldn't think twice about wiping out a school, even if that school is one of the only places for monsters to learn how to adapt to the human world amongst their own kind.**

**"My title offers me much, and I'm not particularly wanting for material goods, but it would be a battle fated to lose. They have the law on their side; Vampire business has always been dealt with by Vampires themselves. Until Moka-chan and Kokoa-chan say otherwise, they are still wards of their father, and will be treated accordingly."**

Rei's jaw tightened. "Should I find your assurances to be falsified at any time, know that no title or building will save you from my wrath, that I swear," she hissed murderously.

He knew they weren't empty words. It was a promise made by a dragon protecting her hoard, and he had no doubt she would raze Youkai Academy to the ground, with all the students inside, before she allowed her pledge to be broken. **"So noted." **She growled at his casual dismissal, but if she thought he was about to be intimidated by a monster—even a dragon—barely a year old, she was sadly mistaken. **"Now, I assume you mean the Wong family as a possible solution, and I agree with you, it's a bad idea, but it **_**is**_** a solution. I have the futures of every Youkai child hanging over my head should I act incorrectly, they do not. Was there another reason you barged into my office, Rei-chan?"**

She growled again, louder this time, torn between frustration and umbrage before slamming her other hand onto his desk. The sound was different, clearer, like wood on rock rather than flesh. As she pulled the limb back, a soft glow pulsed from what was revealed in its wake. Even after all his years of life, he still had to hold himself back from reacting.

It was an uncut red gem nearly the size of the young girl's palm, but what had his attention was the light flickering within, and the heat the stone itself was radiating. Had it been a regular jewel its worth would have been enormous by size alone, what it actually was made it worth far, far more.

"What you behold is crystallized dragonfire, riddle-maker; my Mother's blessing given form," she said, eerily calm. "Should the barrier shielding this place from those who would mean it harm falter, this has power enough to preserve its integrity unaided, however I would hesitate to estimate its lifespan above a week were it to be exclusively relied upon."

She was basically handing him a prepackaged contingency plan, a safety that didn't need a group of above average or otherwise super-powered Youkai on hand to jumpstart the Grand Barrier back to full strength if something like what Hokuto managed ever happened again, not to mention all the other things he could think of with such a thing. When true dragons had been lost so had their peerless gifts, and after millennia one was sitting right in front of him. Still, time had granted him patience, and more than that, the wisdom to discern the many nuances of most any situation. He was dealing with a dragon, and that couldn't be forgotten.

**"The price?"** he asked simply. Negotiating with a dragon was risky business; they were greedy, prideful, and master manipulators when it came to adding to their hoard. Then there was the old standard: if all else fails, use violence, and if they were so inclined they could do just that to great effect. Rei may be young, but she was continually displaying much of her species' knowledge was instinctual, and she had a very keen mind.

Sharp teeth glinted menacingly in her smile. "My treasures owe you nothing. I bore through the indignity of knowing Tsukki was indebted to you purely because I believed you had our best interests at heart. You have proven where your loyalty lies, and it does not escape my notice that 'tis a noble cause, but I refuse to stand by any longer. In addition, I am prepared to offer a set amount of my own scales. In exchange you shall allow Moka-sama and my fire-haired treasure to complete their education here, you shall fashion for myself the proper documentation needed for my life, and permit me to challenge the equivalency exams when I so choose as if I had always attended. From the scales I grant you, you shall assist me in a request of my own beyond my current abilities, and the rest shall be yours to do with as you see fit. Above all, any debt from which you feel they owe even the slightest amount shall be pronounced null and void."

He was actually stunned for a moment. Of all the things he had expected, _generosity_ had been the last. Dragons weren't generous, period. They were fiercely selfish when it came to their wealth, and to broker a deal with one often resulted in the reptile coming out well compensated for their time, when they either ate the person for their impudence or received what they wanted. The gem on his desk would be more than enough to handle her requests, strictly speaking, even though the list was by no means small, but to add another ingredient that had been thought lost to the world on top of that…

There had to be a catch. **"If I refuse?"**

She shrugged nonchalantly. "Then you prove to me you care nothing for my treasures and I leave. This world is larger than the small amount exposed to me thus far, so surely finding another eager to barter properly for this gemstone should not be too difficult. You are but the most convenient means to an end, and for your earlier assistance I thought it only fair you receive the offer first."

Experience told him she wasn't lying, and that was surprising. **"You would actually sell it like a common jewel?"**

Her face twisted with disgust, made all the more frightening with the transformation it was still under. "'Tis not a piece of myself, 'tis merely my Mother encapsulating the flame She granted me. Only my treasures shall ever hold my Tears, and they know the importance of what they hold. They would never betray my trust. In contrast, that rock holds all the significance of a bug to me; however, it holds value in currency, and I find myself in need."

**"And the scales?"**

"My body is still growing," she replied casually. "'Tis the easiest time for me to scratch off the old, but from what I understand they too could be beneficial to my treasures. I intend my goal as a surprise for them, with the remains an enticement for you. Be warned, no one else shall be offered that, and should you decline, 'twould not be offered again."

**"I'm honored,"** he responded with a raised brow. In her own way, it meant she was aware of and thankful for the parts he had in her life, though that mostly consisted of him allowing her and her partner use of resources they wouldn't have otherwise, not direct assistance.

In perfect dragon manner, she said, "You should be." When only silence ensued, she frowned and crossed her arms under her growing bust. "My patience wears thin, riddle-maker. What is your answer?"

He wondered that himself. There didn't seem to be any downside to her agreement; no catch, no last minute change, no nothing. Just the straight up truth of what she expected. Of course, it was then he remembered he wasn't talking to a regular dragon, he was talking to a dragon disciplined by the blood of one of the most humble humans he had ever met. While his body was that of a Vampire's, the Familiar bond tied to the most basic level, and he had seen the changes it had wrought even when she was newly born. Rei was a dragon, of that there was no doubt, but she had been tempered, even if only slightly. There would probably never be another dragon the likes of her again.

Despite himself, he chuckled. **"That's acceptable. To be honest, I expected more conditions."** But when he stretched out his hand to confirm the terms, she stood still.

"Though a condition of this accord 'tis not, 'tis closely related all the same," she stated evenly. His cautious gaze returned, but she held up a finger to placate his assumption. "Fear not, I have no intention of amending the requisites. My issue is thus: I do not desire my treasures to grow accustomed to this method of interference. I have collected their debt so none can gain from their loss, but have them pay it I shall. I ask thee, is there nothing worthy of financial recompense within the bounds of the academic year?"

His chuckle returned, this time with friends. **"So you take the immediate weight from them, but you want to make them work for it."** What she was proposing made a wide smile stretch on his face. **"Their work makes you feel better, and they gain experience and money for after school. Impressive, Rei-chan, most impressive. That sounds like something I would come up with."**

"Yes, I thought 'twould suit your tastes," she retorted dryly. "Now, do you?"

He nodded. **"I may have some acquaintances that can work in Youkai-only environments, and just so happen to owe me a few favors. You no doubt know of the effects you've had on the surroundings here, and I've thought it high past time we remove some of the eyesores littering the school grounds. There are a couple of rundown buildings that were once used as part of the school that are now nothing but health risks and hangouts for the unsavory. I've been looking into remodeling the areas for a while, and if we can get it done before the festival it will give the parents and alumni new reasons to be impressed. Does good ol' manual labor work for you?"**

Her grin was small, but satisfied. "They will be paid?"

**"To make sure no one thinks it's being done solely for them, I'll see if I can't get the contractors to set up interviews for any others looking to make some spending money. Most of the Third Years have finals to worry about, but we should have a diverse enough group to make it work in the end. I'll make some calls and with any luck, I should have a sign-up sheet up on the first day back. As long as they're on it, it won't seem unusual when they get hired."** He had worked on tighter deadlines before, and at least _that_ paperwork would get done, compared to the other junk he had tried, and failed, to do since that morning. The school would be focusing more on preparations for the festival than academics for the two months leading up to it at the end of October, so the teachers would understand if some students were absent to help with the landscaping projects. It would be an interesting experiment, if nothing else.

Rei inclined her head just enough for it to be seen as an acknowledgement. "I find you far more agreeable when you speak plainly, riddle-maker, and I thank you for your aid in this."

**"I care for all my students, Rei-chan. The goal of this school is to ease students into life in their disguises, so when they get out into the world dominated by humans it's hard for them to tell the difference between human and monster in human form. Life can offer so much, and limiting friendships and experiences based on one's race is like cutting off your own arm. I want to see them all succeed, make ties with their human brethren, raise children, and come back to the school better for it. The more we try to separate our worlds, the closer we come to a war of **_**annihilation**_** if pressures ever reach a breaking point. Your friends helped contain something that very nearly pushed that pressure over the edge, and I have a feeling their interactions will be looked to in the future for guidance."**

She scoffed. "As well they should. Certainly one to emulate when dealing with humans is one whom was once human himself. Should they care to follow his example, it may well be a long time until 'war' comes again to Ayashi, but should they mock his efforts, they might well be surprised on whose side he fights," she opined dispassionately.

He knew what she was talking about. Moka and the others never fought for the sake of fighting, they fought to _stop_ the fighting already going on. If the Ayashi ever tried to incite anything, as long as they were alive he was sure they would be the first ones to try and stop it, through force if need be. **"It does this old heart good to know there are some people with their heads on straight,**" he said with a chuckle.

The small teen rolled her eyes. "And my heart goes out to you, for having to deal with the masses that do not. As long as they leave me and mine alone, I could care less."

The headmaster couldn't contain his mirthful cough. _Ah, to be young again._ He doubted she had any idea of what life could have in store for them. All he knew was it would be fun to watch.

She cast a quizzical glance at him, but said nothing about it. "I believe we strayed topics. I should return to my treasures as soon as possible with this news, but I require confirmation." Just like that, her eyes were as hard as the steel they resembled. "You would swear on your life the terms of our agreement will be met?"

He met her gaze easily. **"I'll put it in writing. I need to anyway, to document the exchange,"** he snickered with dark amusement.** "Creative paperwork, I call it. They'll know there was a trade of services, but nothing more if I have anything to say about it. If Shuzen wants to play this game, I'll play."**

His skill and experience in the realm of law and misdirection was put to good use, and Rei was morbidly curious at the speed and efficiency at which he could twist words until they were practically unrecognizable as what they had agreed to. Even then there was nothing to give anything away, and she found herself awed by the display of ruthless ability using nothing more than words on paper. By the time he was done she was happy to use her limited expertise in the area to sign her name, and after he did the same she smiled as her pseudo-transformation faded, genuinely relieved. Her treasures, her _family_, could stop worrying for the moment.

**"If you would satisfy this old man's curiosity, is there any reason why you want to challenge the equivalency exams so soon?"** he asked candidly as he cradled his chin in his folded hands.

She stared at him like he was the dumbest thing she had ever laid eyes on. "I have yet to truly live in the world outside this bubble, but I have been told a great deal about the workings of it. This scare…I will _never_ suffer such a thing again. I now know the fragility of our situation, and I know I cannot afford to stand idle once we leave this place. I refuse to let my family support me unaided, but in order to be of any use I need credentials. As they graduate this year, so too must I try to be equipped similarly."

A slight frown of thoughtfulness formed on his mostly obscured face. **"While I admire your drive, I feel obligated to point out the majority of them have had eighteen years to ready themselves for the workforce. You may look closer to fourteen than Yukari-chan, but…you're not. No matter how old you appear by the time the year is up, it doesn't change the fact that you're barely that old yourself."**

She snarled, but her eyes darted from side to side uncertainly, just like any normal young girl's would have had they been in the same position. "Be silent! My pride may demand I keep what is mine, and restrictions may hinder my ability to solidify the fire gifted to me, but make no mistake, they will _not_ be without my help!"

The headmaster stifled a chuckle. _So like the group that call her their own. Pride, with compassion. I can only hope their children turn out like her._ The thought made him smile.

Her glower showed it hadn't gone unnoticed, and more than likely had been misinterpreted. "Every day I grow, both mentally and physically. I am already capable of completing the schoolwork assigned to Tsukki with only minor assistance, and I plan on using the library here to great effect in furthering my knowledge. I am _not_ a child, regardless of this form."

Real anger was working its way into her tone, and he had no desire to earn the dragon's ire. **"I merely meant to remind you that though your kind is naturally inclined to patience and wisdom, don't be afraid to ask for help yourself should you need it,"** he explained soothingly, and her dark skin flushed an endearing shade darker at her blunder.

She fussed with her styled, messy hair to try and minimize attention to her face. "I…I will keep that in mind, thank you. I had best be going, I have news of great importance to deliver, after all."

**"Don't wait around on my account then. Go,"** he said with amused impatience, adding the necessary shooing motion with his hand towards the door. She glared at him again but this time it wasn't nearly as serious, and her eyes sparkled with the relief she felt inside as she sprinted from the room, her long ponytail flapping behind her.

He sighed deeply when she was gone, settling back into his plush chair while he rubbed his forehead tiredly. That had been close, too close. He had been locked out of the governing body of his school and forced into a position where he could do almost zero. Over his life he had gathered quite the collection of assets, most of which he had made sure couldn't be traced back to him and a good deal of those funding scholarships and other such amenities for the school and law enforcement amongst Youkai. If one of those nameless existences were to have put up the money for Moka and Kokoa, not only would it not be useful anymore, but it opened up the possibility of investigation from the Vampires, and that would be bad. Very bad.

Plus would come the problem of explaining how said nameless being knew either sister, and even if he was able to come up with a reasonable justification, just that someone had tried to stop the process would have their father sniffing around. It wasn't hard to make a nonexistence nonexistent, but it would only draw unwanted attention and make Shuzen paranoid, since as teens neither of his daughters would have the connections or resources to do that. That wasn't entirely true since they had a very influential connection in the Wong family, but with them the price often wasn't worth the result. His later countermeasures would surely cause complications that no one with their best interests in mind would like, and that had to be avoided at all costs.

But Rei on the other hand, she had no family outside of who was already targeted, and would relish the opportunity to _deal_ with anyone that came to 'intimidate' her. She had no life that could be tracked before Youkai Academy, no relatives but those in Paradise, and no fear of the fools that would dare try and separate her from treasures of her hoard. Best of all, the only question he need be wary of in regards to her was her species, and that he could claim secret under Youkai Academy standards.

He couldn't help but wonder just how much she knew about her abilities though, as he eyed the mildly glowing gemstone sitting on his desk. Hardly half a year old and already capable of creating the gifts thought lost to Youkai and Mankind alike. Admittedly, they were just as rare even when dragons were in higher number, but the possibility had been there. Now, it was back. He didn't like being in anyone's debt, but he could admit he owed her more than what they had agreed on. Of course, he knew the cheeky dragon _also_ knew that, but it was too good of a deal to pass up. He would make it up to them later.

He was sure something would come up. It always did.

He sighed again.

Why wasn't that very comforting?

.

V^^^V

.

In another realm, those known to the school as the Newspaper Club were huddled together in the cave that served as their home in Paradise, where only comfort was keeping them from falling apart.

With Tsukune's bedding gone, a new solution had been in order if they wanted to sit anywhere other than solid rock, and thus the group found themselves sitting on a bed-like couch large enough to fit them all easily that had been conjured—summoned?—by magic. It was larger than anything any of them had seen Yukari summon from nothingness, but she hadn't even looked winded, and had mutely pointed to her wristband at their inquisitive looks when she had done it. It didn't hurt that Tsukune had been pumping them full of more energy every day. They were extremely thankful for that, as the bed was a much better alternative than the stone floor, even if it was smoothed flat and usually warmer than it looked.

They didn't know how long they spent just sitting on the plush mattress, silently taking strength from one another, but eventually they started talking. Ideas were put forth and discarded, plans were made and likewise abandoned, until finally Tsukune proposed the one thing he had been hesitant to even think, let alone voice aloud.

Rei's immediate departure upon him doing so stung, it stung badly. Of course he _knew_ it was a stupid idea, but he just didn't know what else to do! His suggestion hung in the air like a bad stench, and he moved his eyes to the soft red cushions he was sitting on, unable to meet their concerned gazes.

He was tired. Not tired, exactly, but drained. He was calm thanks to his friends and family, but with that calm the hopelessness returned. He didn't know what to do, and neither did anyone else. School started in two days, not nearly enough time to get a request in for a loan, and besides which he knew next to nothing about Youkai politics. For all he knew there was a completely different procedure for struggling Youkai Academy students, and with the scholarship options cut off ahead of time he simply couldn't see where else they could go. The headmaster wasn't an option, they had nothing they could offer him for his help, and moreover he already had enough favors to call in. What would he do if they went to him outright asking for _money_ of all things?

It was pathetic. _He_ was pathetic. Career counseling would be further addressed from the minor attempts of earlier years this coming semester as finals approached, but in the end that was inconsequential to his problems at the moment. His grades were improving, he was sure of that, but he was also sure he needed to be better. So much of their time had gone to training physically, as most of their confrontations were of that nature, that their studies had been completed but otherwise ignored. Only Yukari and Ruby were really putting any effort into it since their projects demanded it, and while they weren't for genuine classes, it was still something that was proving to be more than useful in its versatility. The ridiculousness of that came into play when he thought of the obvious. Yukari was a certifiable _genius_ and a sure shot for her choice of university, all tuition paid, and Ruby—while he couldn't be sure of her actual status regarding schooling—already had a job and was well on her way to becoming a respected member of the faculty at the academy. The two that spent the most time on academic pursuits had the least need of them!

And what had he been doing? Exercising his body rather than his brain. From the very beginning it was apparent his transfiguration had adapted to his mind as well, but he had never thought to challenge himself, even after all the reading and work he and Rei had done together for his summer assignments. He had gotten them done, and well, if he admitted it to himself, but could he have made it more thorough, more impressive? In short, the answer was yes, and he needed to start making more of an effort next term; not even that, he needed to start making the best possible effort he _could!_ On his own, he wouldn't be able to provide for his whole family—it was almost literally impossible without winning the lottery—but he was going to make for damn sure he supplied as much as he could to their combined incomes.

But right then, the only thing of real importance was Moka and Kokoa, and that they had no clue what to do to thwart their removal.

The anger was coming back, the burning pit in the bottom of his throat that kept reminding him they were only eighteen years old, and for all their experience at the hardships of life, they still had some they had never dealt with before. His energy was exhausted to the point his limbs ached and his fangs quivered for blood, but still his fingers curled into the padding of the elaborate couch as the sick taste of worthlessness festered in his mouth.

He looked up sharply when a feminine hand fit itself over his, and when he did its partner cupped his cheek and pulled him into a deep kiss that demanded his full attention and would have nothing else. In the small lull he barely remembered to breathe before his lips were dominated again, and when his hand rose to reciprocate, it found itself directed to her chest. The smooth chill of metal was hardly computed when he was forced to yank it away, and his eyes opened wide when the telltale _chink_ echoed in his ears. He had just enough time to see pink bleed white prior to being pushed to the backrest while she moved to straddle him fully, where she grabbed the sides of his head and proceeded to put her outer self's previous accomplishment to shame.

Only heavy breathing could be heard in the aftermath, as Moka and Tsukune sat resting their foreheads together. The trail of a lone tear was marked on her face, and when he brushed it away she clasped his hand with her own.

_**"Know your place, Tsukune,"**_ she ordered affectionately, and added a light smack to the top of his head for emphasis. Though he could see the fear in the depths of her crimson irises, her confidence, her ever-present pride was still there. She had faith in them, in _him_, and in their ability to prevail despite the obstacles. Time and again his lovers continually redefined beauty, and this was one of those times.

An impish grin formed on her face as her eyes darted down to where she sat, and he blushed while averting his gaze, only to blush harder when he realized the others were all grinning at him too, though Kokoa was shaking her head in her hand as she did. _**"Much better. There will always be a way, and we'll find it."**_

His expression darkened suddenly, and she frowned. Then he asked, "What about Mizore?" and understanding dawned instantly.

_**"She will continue to be an important part of our family, she will have as many children as she wants, and we will all love them as our own."**_

Off to the side, the Snow Woman's eyes began watering happily, but Tsukune wasn't done yet. "I never, _ever_ doubted that. I want to give her that more than anything, but _how?_ I'm being realistic here, I want kids…" He took in a shuddering breath, and gave a weak smile filled with hope to every one of them, prompting Mizore to cuddle in next to him while Kurumu took her other side, but they knew he still had more to say. "…I want to have as many as you want, but we're hardly out of school and if Mizore doesn't start soon she _won't_ get as many as she wants." The woman in question looked ready to object, but he gently held a finger to her lips to silence her. "Be honest."

She chuckled demurely. "Tsukune, as long as they're yours I could never have enough, but…" She glanced away shyly, twiddling her fingers, "…I know they'll have plenty of siblings, but I was thinking…four? Five…if I can?"

Moka blinked. Tsukune gulped. Kokoa choked. Kurumu and Ruby smiled. Yukari giggled perversely.

_**"Well…um…well…"**_ Speechlessness wasn't a position Moka Akashiya found herself in often, but hearing that one of her best friends planned on spending the next few years pregnant if she could certainly succeeded in achieving that.

"We'll support you as much as we can, Mizore," Ruby said, her beaming smile still in place.

"Of course we will!" Kurumu exclaimed, all but squirming where she sat next to the stoic ice maiden. "Ooooh, I can't wait! Our family! Can you _imagine_ it? Our kids, all playing together, little Snow Girls and Succubae, and Snow Boys and Incubi!" She squealed blissfully as her tail smacked the cushions behind her in her excitement, and even the normally inexpressive Mizore smiled tenderly at the thought.

"Don't forget the dhampir witches and wizards!" Yukari crowed, though she was practical enough to know who would first bear that honor, as she patted Ruby's belly lovingly. Her elder's face went red in short order, but the warm look that also formed on it as she looked down to where Yukari's hand was settled easily told of her feelings on the matter.

_**"And…eventually…my own children to add to the fold,"**_ Moka marveled. Her children would never face the loneliness she felt, not ever. They would have plenty of brothers and sisters to keep them company, to look out for them where she had no one. She would teach her children to be the best they could, but not at the cost of alienating everyone around them. She had learned well from her life, and she would sooner kill herself than subject them to the same tortuous method that allowed her to practically murder any opponents that were sent against her, for 'experience' or not.

She noticed her sister's downcast eyes before anyone else, and she wasn't about to let that stand. _**"Naturally, they'll expect regular visits from their aunt and their cousins, when it happens,"**_ she commented like she was talking about the weather, and was unsurprised when her younger sibling tackled her off Tsukune's lap into a crushing hug.

It was enough for the young man with them to bark a short laugh, the first genuine one he had done all day. "See? There's already seven of us, and that's if Kokoa decides she doesn't want to live with us. Once children come along…we're going to need a _big_ house, and that means reliable incomes; things I don't know how to get right now. How can we start bringing kids into the world when we're not even certain how _we're_ going to live?"

Mizore shuffled closer, drawing his arms around her as she nestled into his embrace now that Moka was otherwise engaged. "Tsukune, you left before I could tell you. Not every Snow Woman is sold off to a rich businessman," she stated, and even _she_ couldn't keep all the bitterness from her voice at what had almost happened. "Motherhood is something every one of us is prepared for from a young age, and our families are ready for it. My parents aren't poor, Mom even owns a ski resort in the human world. They've been arranging everything for when I finally have a family of my own since I was little; they'll help us. Mom will probably be able to offer you a job that works around university, and I'm sure she would do the same for the rest of us. Once school is over we'll be able to have some time to prepare, so we _will_ be able to get student loans, and the income will help for later. I can take classes by correspondence, and Mom and Dad and the remainder of us will be able to help me with the baby whenever you or anyone else is busy. We can do this, Tsukune. It's not impossible."

The smile that spread over his lips made heat coil in her center, and soon she had been pulled into his lap in a jubilant hug as he laughed out of profound relief. Pulling back only slightly, he coaxed his grip up to her choppy violet hair and tugged her into the deepest kiss he could manage. The throaty hum that she produced as she snaked her tongue into his mouth made the majority of them shift in place awkwardly, and when they parted he lunged for one last kiss before grinning the grin they were all so familiar with, full of boyish charm and mature love.

"We can…we can do it," he breathed, while the grin only grew. "We can actually do it!"

Even with her still on his lap he was able to jump to his feet, and spun the giggling Snow Woman around excitedly until they both collapsed to the plush mattress they were standing on. With his forearm covering his eyes while Mizore nuzzled back into his side, they were all alarmed when they saw the tears streaking down his cheeks, but they were soon revealed to be tears of joy when he started chuckling again.

"I…I was so worried! God, I was so worried…"

Moka had disentangled herself from her younger sister by then, and carefully pulled his arm down so she could clasp his hand. Naturally, the action drew everyone's attention. _**"Tsukune, you're not alone in this. Your words, not mine."**_

To their surprise, he nodded. "I know," he confessed somberly, "You helped me realize that earlier, but…it didn't change our situation any, it just calmed me down. This…_this_ gives me some hope."

She chortled under her breath as she placed his palm over her heart, and he didn't even blush as he looked into her eyes. This wasn't teasing, this was serious. _**"I know. It took most of my concentration to keep from crying along with you just when you let yourself relax. I understand what you're going through; I'm going through it too."**_

"And with or without a blood-bond, I'll always be with you, Tsukune," Kurumu declared sincerely. "Just keep being you." Beside her, Mizore bobbed her head in agreement.

Again he surprised them, this time with the sheer depth of self-loathing on his face. "Yeah, 'cause that wasn't what got us into this to start with," he spat incredulously as he reclaimed his hand and shuffled up to sit properly. "Oh wait, it was!"

Since they were closest, both Moka _and_ Mizore cuffed him upside the head.

"OW! What was that for?"

"Mu, you were being stupid," Mizore pouted, while the vampiress smirked.

_**"Must I repeat myself? Bad Tsukune, bad!"**_

Kurumu couldn't let that one go, even as she snickered. "What did you do on the carpet!"

Yukari paused thoughtfully in the middle of her giggles and said, "Don't you mean 'who'?"

They all exploded into laughter as Tsukune's whole body lit up in an extraordinary blush, but more than one of them was sporting colored cheeks as well, though from fantasy or memory was impossible to tell.

When they finally quieted, the Snow Woman snuggled into her Vampire's arms yet again, and his thoughts stilled when she looked up at him, her clear blue eyes mournful. "Tsukune, you need to stop blaming yourself. Not everything is your fault. You know I want kids, and _I_ know _you_ know I want kids, but I didn't tell you anything else. I knew we would have support once we finished school, _you_ only knew you were going to have to support me. We're in a bad spot right now, but you didn't just think of Moka…you thought of _us_. If I had only told you earlier, you wouldn't have reacted like you did…so don't just blame yourself…blame me too."

He shook his head resolutely. "I would never blame you, Mizore! We've been busy. Club, training, spending time together _outside_ of all that; hell, when school starts back up we'll have the Commission _and_ festival preparations to deal with too. It's still my responsi—mph?"

It was Moka who had cut him off, finger pressed to his lips just as he had to Mizore once before. _**"That's your pride talking."**_

As much as he wanted to deny it, the more he went over it in his head, the more he realized she was _right_.

_I fought so hard to get through Moka's pride to know what was underneath, and here I am doing the same freaking thing! _His shoulders slumped. "Sorry."

_**"A Vampire's pride is a great and terrible thing, and I'm sure yours was wounded,"**_ she said with a warm smile._** "Don't let that blind you, it's the worst thing pride of any kind can do; I would know. As long as you remember that, apology accepted."**_

Ruby laughed lightly as she rubbed her neck's markings. "Sheesh, this has been a pretty crazy day, huh? I feel tired already!"

"I know what you mean!" Kurumu agreed. "We've been running around in circles! Feeling bad, feeling better, feeling worse, feeling better; ugh, my head hurts! I liked it better when we were talking about kids! Mama's been wondering when she'll get little Succubae grandbabies!"

"Wasn't she still wondering when you'd become a woman last time you called her?" Mizore asked in amusement, and her best friend and lover puffed out her cheeks childishly.

"That's not the kind of thing you tell your mother over the phone!" Unnoticed, Tsukune sighed in relief. "I have to tell her in person so she can see how great my Destined One's become!" And that relief was short-lived.

Then his brain caught up with what was actually said, and dread filled him even as color fled his skin. "Wait, I'm not a human anymore. That means our kids will be—"

"Succubae," the blue-haired beauty finished for him as she waved off his concern. "Or Incubi, I guess. Depends if they're boys or girls."

The supreme confidence she had in saying that definitely confused the young vampire, and he responded with a well-earned, "How is that possible?" She seemed to shrink in on herself, suddenly uncertain for some reason, and while the look she set on him was bashful for the most part, more alarming to him was the slight _fear_ he unexpectedly picked up on in her scent. The arm not around Mizore reached over to graze her chin, gently coaxing her to look directly into his now _very_ fierce amber gaze. "Kurumu, never, and I repeat _never_, be afraid to tell me something. _Ever_."

The vehemence in his voice clearly got through to her, and she flashed him one of her million-watt grins as she fidgeted nervously. "Ehhehehe, how'd you know?"

He tapped his nose meaningfully, and her cheeks flooded with warmth. "Fear changes a person's scent. I've spent enough time hunting to recognize it."

She drooped, well aware of the unspoken words in his quiet tone. _"How could you be afraid of me?"_

"S-Sorry. I-It's just…well, Mizore hasn't been the only one that's kept something from you. You'll think it's stupid, I know—a-and it's not anything bad or something like that!" she added hastily, "It's just—damn it, I'm not good at this! Look, Snow People can only have Snow Children no matter what species their mate is! Succubae are the same!" His eyes widened at her shout, and she lowered hers sadly. "Why do you think we're both close to extinction? Without love, some monsters would prefer monstrels to basically giving up their heritage entirely.

"I'm a Succubus, Tsukune, we're _born_ for love and all that involves…especially sex. Touching, kissing, making love; we _crave_ it, we're literally _made_ for it. You'll never find an unattractive Succubus or Incubus, some of us even use…um…_compatibility_ to determine our destined one. We could be with a different partner every day and if we didn't think they were our destined mate, we wouldn't get pregnant. Tell me, what kind of person turns down the chance of a one night stand with absolutely no consequences?" At his indignant glare, she smiled fondly. "Well, other than a select few, not very many. Even now that you've accepted me, I haven't allowed it because I know we aren't ready, but it would _only_ work with you. If I tried to have a child with anyone else, it wouldn't work. It's part of our magic.

"But there's another part. Being with a Succubus means they'll never be bored in bed, but it also means they'll never have kids other than Succubae or Incubi. We instinctively take the better traits in our mates and add it to our children, but what makes us who we are in the first place always means they'll end up as one of us. The Snow People have a time limit, but if they can get pregnant during that time they still _can_. For us, it has to be with who we think is our destined one, and only if they've accepted that. If we're rejected it's not the end of the world, but there'll always be a strong tie between the two before that. We need love, not just sex. Most would rather just use us for pleasure than let us strengthen our species. That's not saying we don't use them for pleasure too, but it's hard when you want kids."

To say Tsukune was flabbergasted would be the understatement of the century, and they all shuddered at the rumble that resonated from deep in his chest. "So you're saying…you could be with a monstrel, and as long as they accepted that they were your destined one, you would still have Succubae children?" She nodded. "And the Snow People, they basically _give_ themselves away, all because that's the easiest way they have to make sure they have someone that will accept their kids?"

It was a stretch, and grossly oversimplified, but Mizore nodded as well. "It's like an arranged marriage with a clause for children. Not…not all of them are as bad as what happened to me; most work out pretty well, and it gives the kids a family," she whispered, and she felt his muscles quaver.

He let out a long breath as he relaxed into his Snow Woman, and she tightened her grip on him like she was afraid of what he would do should she let him go. "I'd like to say I'm surprised, but I'm not. I'm really not. It's pride." The ambiance sparked with power, thick with magic he had no chance of controlling in his current state as his teeth ground together and his rosary shuddered. "Well screw that! We're going to show them what a Snow Woman is like in a _real_ family! We're going to show them what they're missing out on by choosing not to really _love_ a Succubus! We're going to _prove_ how great witches are and they'll be choking on their regret until the day they _die!_ I want them to see _Vampires_ stepping up where they were wrong, and **I swear it, they **_**will!**_"

As his naked chest heaved in his rage while he sucked in air, the rest were practically glowing with delight. Moka was breathing similarly, her long fangs exposed and throbbing with need, but not _just_ for those reasons. It was because for a few short seconds, red eyes had met red eyes. There was hope, and more than that, there was a resolve to make that hope a reality. It wasn't much of a plan, but it didn't need to be. They were going to live their lives regardless of what anyone else thought, and in the end they were going to reveal the stupidity that had integrated itself into the Youkai world or they would die trying.

"I would expect nothing less from you, Tsukki," a familiar, childish yet husky voice spoke from the entrance of their cave, where Rei was just finishing doing up her shirt. She had obviously flown somewhere, if she had shed her clothes at any time. "'Tis an admirable cause, and one worthy of our attentions. By living, they shall see our greatness. Simple, but effective, and all obstacles meant to hinder shall instead make us stronger." With poise beyond her years, she strode to the circular couch and hopped up to sit on the encircling backrest. "One such obstacle has been taken care of, now we must focus on the days ahead."

There was a wave of numbness that swept through those assembled as they struggled to comprehend the meaning behind those innocuously said words, but they could come to no conclusion but the obvious.

"Rei," Kokoa croaked, her eyes pleading, "please, don't be cryptic. Tell us straight up, _did you find us a way out?_"

The disguised dragon winced at the utter desperation in the redhead's tone. She remembered that pitch well, one that had become increasingly prominent the longer they had talked before she finally left when the suggestions became too much for her. She made sure to answer so clearly there couldn't be any confusion. "Yes. Any debts incurred have been settled, and any immediate needs have been met. We are safe."

It took a little while for those words to sink in properly, but when they did everyone was moving at once. Later, no one would remember how Tsukune managed to get between the women he had been holding and who were likewise rushing towards the bronze-skinned teen, but somehow Rei found herself encompassed in the hold of her partner. She was still tiny compared to him, and his muscled arms were shivering as they held her flush to his strong frame, his head bent low to hide his face in her hair. She hadn't realized how much she missed the contact she had so readily enjoyed over their month excursion until she was put in the position again, and she eagerly returned the embrace only to then realize it wasn't just his arms, it was his whole body that was shaking. The man she knew could face things many times his own size even when sealed, whose body seemed to be carved from stone—warm, _wonderful_ stone—felt as though he would break apart with only the lightest tap.

"Thank you, Rei," he rasped through a choked sob as he kissed the crown of her head. "Thank you so much. I can't tell you how much this means to me, I can't."

She squeezed him in silent gratitude. "There is no need, for that I already know."

When they parted she was inundated by the rest, each form of appreciation more enthusiastic than the last, until ultimately Moka stood before her, her expression unreadable.

It was so easy to forget what the little girl she was looking down on really was, even when they saw her real form often enough. She was a creature from ages past, one of the first to receive the blessing of the Earth. She was a lethal predator, a proud guardian of all she held dominion over; she was a powerhouse with a heritage as rich as the original Vampire, and currently she was almost two whole feet shorter than her in the body of a thirteen year old girl. Long ago, the cave they were in would eventually be filled with riches greater than any king's, yet she took from the only things she had to offer and ensured the livelihood of someone other than herself. It was a nigh unthinkable concept, and yet it had happened because she had joined herself to a man that felt his greatest treasures were the friends he had been through thick and thin with, and she had made that ideal her own.

Bending down to one knee, Moka brought herself to Rei's level, where steel grey met blood red. According to Tsukune, the girl was something of an exhibitionist, though he knew enough to attribute that to her dislike of clothes rather than any kind of deviancy. As the vampiress looked the dragon over, she could tell the girl had good reason for it. Her body was probably treated as her most highly regarded treasure, as was being revealed every day she aged. While she had initially transformed into an even younger form, her beauty was becoming obvious to the point it almost screamed of her inhuman nature. She likely considered her reptilian body to be perfection, so when she had tried to transform into a human shape that was transferred over insomuch as she considered a human body could be. Moka was looking forward to how Rei would turn out, if not just to see Tsukune's reaction.

Carefully drawing her forward, the vampiress wrapped her arms around the young woman that had saved her from a fate worse than death. It was a far cry from what she deserved, but it was all Moka could give her at the moment. Moving to hold her at arm's length, she smiled kindly and laid a gentle kiss on her forehead, then her cheek, and went back to the embrace with her chin resting on her shoulder. The emotions bubbling inside her were too numerous to name, but all that mattered was she was safe. _They_ were safe.

She didn't even know she was trembling until Rei's small hands were stroking down her back and Tsukune's sturdy arms were supporting them both. One by one their family joined the hug, and Moka only held Rei tighter. She had come so close, so very close to being pulled away from the only people that she loved and that loved her. Going to the Wong's was the best bet they had, loathe as she was to admit it, and Rei had come through with the impossible when they needed it most.

_**"Thank you. Thank you, Rei, thank you. If there's anything I can offer you, anything, you'll have it,"**_ she stated earnestly, and Rei chuckled softly as she continued rubbing the more mature woman's back.

"While tempting, sadly, arrangements have been put in place heretofore," she lamented dramatically. "I have secured employment with the promise of financial recompense, that of which involves the removal and replacement of the abandoned blemishes upon this recovering land. If you would seek to repay my gesture, I would require your participation in this endeavor."

Stunned silence answered her announcement as they all sat back from her in a daze, staring at the messy-haired girl until Yukari gulped loudly. "You…you got us jobs? That pay? In the middle of the school year?"

Her grin back showed entirely too many teeth. "Oh, shall we say 'tis a voluntary opportunity for all students should they be found acceptable, with but your names having certain…assurances. 'Twas the riddle-maker's initiative as a means to better the reputation of the school, while also serving to bring new attractions to the festival."

Ruby laughed nervously. "Um, Rei, am I included in that?"

The teen rolled her eyes. "You think me daft? Your responsibilities are not so small as to allow such a thing. Your position is of great import, never think otherwise. Merely continue on as you have and that shall be thanks enough."

She let out the breath she'd been holding with a grateful smile.

"Sounds like construction work. A paying job…" Tsukune murmured, "that would give us _some_ money for after school, and it would look good on applications too." He rubbed his temples tiredly as he thought it over. "We already have so much to do though, can we really do them all?"

"Of course we can!" Kokoa jibed, her usual confidence back and overflowing. "Think of it for a second! Most of us are on the Commission; if the students see us helping out with something so big, they won't just see us working for cash, they'll see us taking extra time out of our day to make the school a better place! We'll be tearing down those old wrecks that're nothing but nuisances and making them worth something again!

"I mean, I love going to Mononoke Arcade every now and then, but there has to be things to do on campus too. With the wildlife coming back there's been picnics by the sea, studying in the shade; just the other day I saw some the art club out doing landscapes! We give the students more to enjoy and you better bet they'll think we're different from the last one! If not, then well, we've got bigger problems."

As if they needed another reason to sign up, but that definitely settled it.

_**"I suppose Omote and I could switch off every day so both of us can do our part,"**_ Moka thought aloud.

Kokoa made to protest at the idea of her perfect sister dirtying herself in such a way, but a firm look from said sibling instantly took any wind out of her sails. For the same reason the youngest Shuzen was even _willing_ to see the good in manual labor more suited to lesser beings, Moka would help as much as she could.

What it all came down to was: they were nobodies. Kokoa had been ostracized and subtly—and not so subtly—mocked over her life because she wasn't as exceptional as her sisters. She was strong, and she thrived in battle, but that status would never really go away in the eyes of her father's peers. She had done nothing to earn the letter that would tear her from Youkai Academy, but it was known she considered no one closer to her than her wayward sister and so she too had been put in the same situation to ensure she couldn't help her. While a rosary now adorned her neck and the hair it disguised was lightening by the day, she had no desire to show that to those who would only use her worse if they knew.

She had lived for almost two years without the shadow of her family over her. Even if she had been forced into confrontation with them at times—like with Kahlua—they had no direct control over what she did. They had been a threat, but she had known for the most part they were content to let her do as she pleased. Her only worth was as a Shuzen, and even that only gave her a modicum of respect. Akuha had more than proved her mettle as a vampiress and a Shuzen, as had Kahlua. They were both feared and respected for reasons completely apart from their surnames, though arguably those reputations had been earned doing things _for_ that surname more often than not.

Once upon a time she would have killed to be called on by her father, and she might have been expected to do just that if he had. Seeing how happy Moka was now, even if she had yet to find her mother, put a new spin on things. She had long come to terms with knowing all she really wanted was her sister to acknowledge her, not her family, which she had previously associated as the same. Not anymore. Moka cared for her, had given her the recognition she craved so badly, so she could care less about the last name she bore. She wouldn't be used; if she was going to do something it would be because _she_ wanted to do it. Be it for selfish reasons or to help someone close to her, it would be purely because of _her_.

And Moka…the less said about Moka's circumstances, the better. There might have been a time when she respected the Shuzens, maybe even loved them, but that time was long past. Even in her mind Kokoa could no longer blame her role-model for distancing herself from her own flesh and blood. The disassociation had started years earlier, from the second she left and chose to go by Akashiya. At the time Kokoa might have been able to delude herself into thinking it had been because she didn't want to risk the recognition of the Shuzen name, now she knew that had been the very first act Moka Akashiya took in separating herself from Moka Shuzen, daughter and _object_ of Dark Lord Issa Shuzen.

She was the black sheep; she knew she was the black sheep, for she had made herself the black sheep. The one she cared for most—her mother—had left, so she would too. She would find her and they would live like they always had. Happily.

Yet years passed and she became cynical, embittered in her failure in that _and _in connecting with others her age. She had come so close to giving up, and nearly had as she returned to the Youkai World, one step away from her father, by choosing to go to Youkai Academy instead of a human high school.

But there she found something.

Not her mother, but family all the same. She just hadn't known it.

Now it wasn't Moka Akashiya, it was Moka _Aono_ who stood ready for the tribulations ahead, whatever they might be, with her Clan by her side. For that she would do anything, even labor like a lowly commoner rather than the high-born, S-class vampiress she was. Both individually and as a Clan they were beyond impressive, but that didn't change the fact that they were akin to a newborn. Their oldest member had hardly seen two decades pass, and the resources they actually _owned_ amounted to what could be expected of a group of teenagers.

In short: they were strong, but in the eyes of the world they were still nobodies. Until they could bear the weight of the connections they had without risking serfdom every time they tried to use them, they were nothing but high school kids with higher-ups willing to humor them. And Moka knew that.

_**"Kokoa, if I'm to be a leader of this Clan I can't and **_**won't **_**back down from what needs to be done,"**_ she stated in a tone that brooked no argument.

The younger vampiress smiled softly. Every time she thought her sister couldn't get any more extraordinary, she was proven wrong. "We're starting from scratch, huh?" she asked, her voice small as she wrapped her arms around her knees.

Moka nodded solemnly, but felt a grin come over her as Yukari's hand sought out hers while Tsukune's took the one remaining. _**"No, not quite. To the Elders and Vampires in general, yes, we are a Clan with nothing. **_**But**_**, we **_**are**_** friends with Fong-Fong and Ling-Ling Wong, the next generation of the Wong Family, grandchildren of a Dark Lord and heirs to the criminal underground throne. If we were to deal with their parents, we would be nothing but children with little to offer, but to deal with **_**them**_**, we're friends. We have more than a passing acquaintance with another Dark Lord, the ruler of Youkai Academy, and eventually ours could become a mutually beneficial relationship if we play our cards right. Right now all we can offer is favors, which can stack up quickly and become very dangerous later on. Eventually, though…eventually…"**_

"Eventually we'll be a real force to be reckoned with," Kokoa finished as her smile turned delightedly dark.

_**"Exactly,"**_ she preened, _**"but that will take work."**_

It was a lofty goal, and one they would all have to help with to reach. They would though, gladly. Anything to make sure they never suffered another day like this.

"Speaking of," Rei interjected, "I met our fledglings on the way back. They were quite put out at our absenteeism, but were soothed appropriately once I explained the situation."

What _actually_ happened was Noriko had gone into an explosive rant complete with pyrotechnics about how long they had been waiting while Isao frowned in the background, and Rei…hadn't reacted well. Both were sufficiently cowed when she was done yelling at them, if their shivering against the school wall holding each other was any indication. She took it as a job well done and resumed her trek to tell her family the good news.

The others were blissfully unaware of that aspect of her story, but they were glad the two junior leaders knew they had good reason to miss their usual training exercises. They thanked Rei for it, naturally, and her skin darkened prettily under the renewed praise even as new topics were brought up for discussion.

There were things to do, plans to make, items to craft. Their plate got fuller by the day but they couldn't do anything but go along with it if they didn't want to risk being overwhelmed by what the future may hold.

Not that some of them didn't feel overwhelmed already.

Tsukune just wanted the day to end.

What he needed above all was rest. For his body, for his mind.

For his soul.

He felt drained in every way that mattered. All he wanted was rest.

He wasn't the only one.

...

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**Author's Notes:** And that's chapter twenty-five! You may wonder why it took so long, but…let's just say I decided another chapter break was in order. It got way too long. On the bright side, you shouldn't have to wait too long for chapter twenty-six. I mean it this time!

…Don't look at me that way, LOL!

Now I know I haven't answered all the questions posed in the reviews for last chapter, but I made a significant dent, and more is coming next chapter. One the subject of reviews, allow me to use another quote from LittleKuriboh and his wildly hilarious Yu-Gi-Oh The Abridged Series (I admit, I didn't ask permission to use it, but I am giving credit here. I never claimed it or the one from last chapter as my own):

HOLY (BLEEP) ON A (BLEEP) SANDWHICH!

You guys are positively, absolutely, mind-numbingly awesome! I really hope it's a trend that continues, because you gave me so much to think about and SO, SO much amazing encouragement!

There were a few detractors that thought Tsukune was too emo, and for that I only have two theories. Either you're too young to be reading this story in the first place, or you've had rich parents to bail you out of everything. As Amoral Philosopher said, you _cannot_ skim in this story, it doesn't work. If you had read it all properly, you would have realized the letters came only two days before school starts up. There was no _time_ for jobs anymore, or loans, or anything like that. It was done like that for a reason. Clearly, you don't really have a decent idea of PANIC either. I'm not talking about mild anxiety, I'm talking about full-bore, the-world's-gonna-end PANIC. As most people realized, he wasn't thinking straight. That's all I'm going to say on the subject, I just wanted to clear those things up outside the story itself. Hopefully this and the following chapter clear up anything else.

As you may have noticed however, I did like some of the suggestions given—even if they weren't given in the best of intentions—so I adapted the plan I had in place. The construction idea got me thinking of what I could do with that, and it ironed out some of the other things I had been wondering about. I DO take everything you guys say seriously, so even if you review just to tell me 'good job', I appreciate it.

And those wondering about Akuha and Issa, as I said before, this is a DIVERGENCE fic. They make it to the Wong's fine, but almost everything else after is different, _including_ the past. More explanation on that will come later on in the story, I simply wanted to make that one thing obvious.

One last thing. Those with a good memory may remember in an earlier chapter I made it canon in my story that magical energy couldn't be stored in a non-living thing. How then, was Rei's crystal any different? Simple, it's her fire condensed by Nature itself, but it was _in_ her. Similar but not identical to her Tears, they are, in essence, a gem made by Nature using the fire it granted her, thus she doesn't see it as coming strictly from her, and thus she would consider parting with it. Rather than placing the energy into an object, the object was _created_ from that energy. Thus: crystallized dragonfire. Also remember what the headmaster said about them, and the restrictions Rei's mentioned about making them, and that should take care of any confusion.

Also, some have asked about what Rei's haircut looks like. This is what I based it on. http:/www (dot) pivot-point (dot) edu (dot) au/sydney/content (dot) php?id=91

Hopefully everything stays intact. Just replace the (dot)s with . and you should be good to go.

See you next chapter!

And hey, if you made it to this point, why not tell me what you think?


	26. The Song of Truth

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Rosario+Vampire, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story. Simple enough, ne? Just don't copy from this story and we're all good!

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**The Song of Truth**

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_There were things to do, plans to make, items to craft. Their plate got fuller by the day but they couldn't do anything but go along with it if they didn't want to risk being overwhelmed by what the future may hold._

_Not that some of them didn't feel overwhelmed already._

_Tsukune just wanted the day to end._

_What he needed above all was rest. For his body, for his mind._

_For his soul._

_He felt drained in every way that mattered. All he wanted was rest._

_He wasn't the only one._

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Kokoa laid on her futon, snug under the covers as she pretended to sleep and wished for the real thing. Normally a room filled with so many people would be sweltering, especially in the summer heat, but Ruby had her windows open and Mizore kept things temperate without even trying, and unconscious at that. Against her protests, the girls had dragged Tsukune in with them, and he was currently in a place enviable to men and women alike. She herself had kept to her futon rather than Ruby's magically altered bed, where she heard naught but peaceful breathing indicative of sleep.

How they could sleep so easily escaped her. She had way too much to think about, things she'd rather _not_ think about.

…Things she had never thought to think about before.

As she was just about to sigh deeply and roll over yet again in an attempt to get comfortable enough to join them in slumber, a small breeze wafted innocently through the room. Or rather, it _would_ have been innocent had she not heard many of the bodies she was keeping track of mumble in response and shift in a way that suggested they had more room than they had had moments before. Her eyes snapped open when she heard the doorknob twist, and someone stepped _out_, not _in_.

She was tired, cranky, and her emotions had been through the metaphorical wringer more times in one twenty-four hour period than they ever had, which was saying something with how her life had gone. Curious, she sat up and looked to where the others were tangled together in a mess of limbs and skewed clothing, an amusing—and arousing, if she was being honest with herself—sight by anyone's standards. What she hadn't expected was to find the moron not among them. Most definitely beyond curious now, she threw off her blanket and edged ever so carefully out the door. She wasn't worried about anyone but her target seeing her, since she was still clothed in her silk pajama pants and a comfortable tank top perfect for the weather.

She spotted him without difficulty, sitting directly in her line of sight on the sturdiest branch of the nearest tree, staring up at the stars as his feet dangled below.

_Honestly, the idiot…_

Even with most of her growing power sealed, it only took a few jumps to land right next to him with nary a wobble despite her weariness. She noticed his honey-colored eyes slide over to regard her, eerily lit in the starlight, but other than that he didn't react to her presence at all. She would have commented had the shadows not highlighted the dark circles etched under those tired amber orbs, and the words died in her throat.

"Couldn't sleep either, huh?" she asked instead, hushed like the silent night around them, and he nodded.

"Too much on my mind," he replied with a wry smile. "I'm so tired I can't get to sleep, if that makes any sense."

She chortled. "You wouldn't be talking to me if it didn't."

"Touché."

A gentle wind rustled the leaves of their surroundings, filling the stillness that would have been uncomfortable had the two been awake enough to care that this was one of the rare times they were alone together for any length of time, something Kokoa usually avoided. This time, it had been her to actively seek him out. To be fair, she would have done the same to anyone that left a bed straight out of a fantasy, but that it had been the sole man of the group to have done it made it irresistible.

She had to point one thing out though.

"You look like crap."

He snorted. "I feel like crap too. Go figure." With a sigh, he pinched the bridge of his nose and tried to will his brain to cease its incessant prattling, but just like the other two million or so times he had attempted it, it didn't work. He turned on the branch so he could rest his back against the thick trunk it stemmed from, unmindful of the bark digging into his bared flesh. He was clad in only a pair of shorts, as while he was comfortable not wearing much else but underwear to bed with his lovers, it wasn't suitable with Yukari, Rei, and Kokoa there as well.

As for the redheaded vampiress, the new seating allowed him to get a good look at her under the moonlight, and he blinked in surprise as his sleep-deprived cranium spat out the first thing he thought. "You look really nice with your hair down."

Kokoa grabbed the sides of her head unwittingly and sure enough, she remembered that like every other time before bed, she had taken out her trademark pigtails to let the ginger locks flow unimpeded down her head. "T-Thanks…I don't do it often."

He had a pretty good idea why. The remnants of her regular style had given her hair just a bit of wave and revealed its true measure, which was easily long enough to reach her shoulders. Add just a bit more length, color it blonde, put in a tiara and darken her skin, and she was close to a dead ringer for Kahlua.

His hand moved before he could tell it not to, smoothly brushing some of the loose strands behind her ear.

When had she moved so close? To tell the truth, Kokoa didn't know, but she still felt her eyes flutter when his fingers brushed her sensitive skin. She jerked back as if stung when that registered. _I'm tired, that's it! Too tired! That's all!_

Tsukune, being Tsukune, interpreted it a completely different way. "Kokoa, you shouldn't be ashamed of how you look. Kahlua-san is…" he grimaced, "…Kahlua-san is a beautiful woman. She's crazy as all get-out, but she's a beautiful woman."

That earned a sincere giggle from the vampiress, and the small smile she gave him felt like it was the first one she had ever truly offered him. "She is…isn't she?"

And with those words, the thoughts she had been trying to keep away came rushing back.

His smile in return faltered when tears started glistening on her moonlit skin as she stared up at the summer's night sky, and it was only then it occurred to him that she had never cried, not once the entire day. Moka had cried; he had cried; nearly everyone save Rei had cried. But not her. She was bound to break, it just took her longer. And break she did.

"She's always scared me, you know? She could hurt me without even meaning to, and I was just so damn…_weak_." Had her voice been any softer not even his senses would have heard it, and he knew that even though he was sitting right next to her, she was no longer seeing him. The only thing flittering past her unfocused gaze was her memories. "She tried to take care of me, and did I allow her? No, I _resented_ her for it. Onee-sama made me strong; she never coddled me or treated me like a kid, she fought me like she fought everyone else. But Kahlua-neesan…whenever she got back from missions, it'd always be worse. She'd act all carefree and childish, try to play with me and pamper me…but…I always wondered how much of that really was an act…and…and how much she wished it wasn't. She didn't want to fight! She was so much stronger than me, she had the strength I wanted, and she didn't want to fight! God, I HATED her for it!"

Even if he didn't know she was venting, Tsukune wouldn't have been able to say anything. He could only sit, transfixed, as grief slowly tainted the young woman's countenance.

She rubbed at her eyes angrily as she grit her teeth to the empty landscape. "And Fairy Tale, Fairy Tale was just another goddamn _investment!_ Mister big bad Dark Lord didn't care if they actually destroyed humanity or not, he was paid for his daughters' services from the beginning! Even if we didn't destroy _them_ instead, he probably planned on doing it if they got close to succeeding anyway! And Kahlua-neesan…how many times was she forced to kill before we finally stopped them? How many tears was she forced to cry?"

Kokoa laughed bitterly. "I can't believe it took me so long to figure it out. I grew up knowing those tears, and I knew she cried them for the lives she would take with that awesome power I wanted so badly, yet why she acted like she did, why she tried to baby me, I could never figure that out. I was too scared to try and actually _think_ about it. When you and...when you and Onee-sama got together, I started to understand it. When she _cried_ after what happened to you even after beating her revenge out of Alexander that first time, I got closer. But today, today I _knew_. Kahlua-neesan didn't want me to get hurt, she was trying to protect me from what she had to do. She acts like a kid because no one ever treated her like one, and she wanted me to enjoy it while I could…"

What began as another laugh turned into coarse sobs, and since Tsukune didn't know what else to do, he gathered her into his lap and hugged her. She didn't pull away like he thought she would. Far from it.

"And today—! Dammit just look at what happened today! Did something like this happen to her too? She didn't have anyone to go to, no one to help her—! Mom probably _encouraged_ it! Just look at how easily everything nearly went to shit for us! God only knows what she went through, and she still tried to protect me, just like Onee-sama!" She was weeping openly now, clasped to him frantically as she sniffled to quell her runny nose, to no avail. "All I could do then was help stop Fairy Tale so she…so she wouldn't have to kill again for a little while, and I…and I was less than useless today! Screw useless, I was…I was USED to cripple any chance we would have had without Rei!

"Dammit…dammit dammit…GOD! DAMMIT!" she screamed. "Years! _Years_ I've spent idolizing that bastard, and he does this to me!" With motions jerky in rage, she used her shirt to dry her face and wipe her nose. It wasn't the most hygienic, but it wasn't like she had another option. "You know what, he _deserves_ what we did to Fairy Tale; it's better in the Wong's hands anyway!" She curled into herself, drawing deeper into her fellow vampire's embrace as her sobs slowly quieted. "I lost one sister because of my own stupidity, I won't lose another."

Tsukune squeezed her reassuringly as his heart ached in sympathy for the growing redhead. He only hoped it gave him the right words. "…You weren't stupid, Kokoa, you were just too young to understand. I'm sure you didn't lose a sister either; she still loves you, and Moka, she told you that. She fought because she had no other choice, but you're still her sisters. I may be new to the whole Vampire thing, but if there's one thing I'm sure of, it's that."

Unwanted, a giggle burst from her mouth. "What happened to 'crazy as all get-out'?"

The small smile she had spawned on him became tinged with melancholy, and the sight struck her to her core. "If I had to get a little crazy to protect my family, I would."

Despite the downright hot summer weather, she shivered. "You just stay the way you are, alright, idiot?"

He stuck out his tongue at her. "Yes, Kokoa-_sama_."

The humor was just what she needed, and as she relaxed into his naked chest her position _finally_ hit her. Worse yet, she found she just didn't care. It was nice. It was really, really nice.

When he realized she was looking at him, something in her eyes made him pause. "Kokoa…?"

She was breathing softly; long, heavy breaths as she pinned him in place. "This never happened."

Before he could ask what she meant, her mouth was over his.

His thoughts screeched to a grinding halt, crashed, burned, exploded, then blew away in the wind. Speaking; saying something, _anything_, was what he needed to do, he knew that. He needed to stop this, but the second his lips parted she reacted in a way he never could have expected. In point of fact, she reacted in a way _she_ never could have expected either. It was supposed to be a simple peck, something that went far past her previous comfort zone around him to show how much she appreciated him listening to her. That wasn't what happened.

The lust that had spent months simmering beneath an ocean of denial boiled up like an undersea volcanic eruption, and she surged into him, deepening the kiss as best she knew how. It was clumsy, sloppy, and screamed of inexperience, but was it _ever_ passionate. With his mind temporarily frozen, his traitorous body took over, and the sound she made when his tongue responded to her advances made his breath catch. She fell into him as his practiced motions easily dominated her awkward attempts and turned her insides to jelly, but her pride as a vampiress wouldn't let her completely submit as she strung her fingers into his chocolate hair and fought back with vigor.

_More_. She needed _more_.

Blame it on the mind-altering effects of sleep-deprivation, the raw emotion that had just been shared between the two vampires, or perhaps that displaying affection physically had become so casual when it was only their group together that none of them even blinked when a kiss was shared anymore—though only with a select few—but whichever it was, their kiss didn't stop, it only became more heated. When she started getting even _more_ aggressive, grinding her pajama-clad womanhood into his awakening arousal, the shock made him wrench himself back like she was electrified, which also made him smash his head into the trunk behind him none too gently. He hissed in pain while Kokoa moaned in disappointment, but as they looked at each other while they recovered, he could see the color fade from her face as her sluggish brain comprehended just what it was she had done.

"Please tell me I just imagined that," she said fearfully.

He licked his lips nervously, still ripe with her taste, and shook his head once. "If you did, you have a pretty vivid imagination."

She gulped. "Oh…oh crap. I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean…I-I mean I wasn't supposed to… but _damn_, where'd you learn to do that thing with your tongue?"

"Mostly from Mizore," he answered automatically, before sputtering at the sudden turn of her sentence and his instant response. "W-What the hell, Kokoa! What was…_that?_"

The red of her cheeks made her hair look pale by comparison. "I…have no idea. I know what it was _supposed_ to be, but not what it turned into."

"And what was it supposed to be?" he asked with a strangled squeak. When all he got back was unintelligible mumbling, he narrowed his eyes. "Hmm?"

"…A thank you, idiot," came her quiet reply as her hair shielded her face from his view. "Just a quick peck, you know? I know you didn't have to listen to me, but you did, and you…hugged me," she went on, even quieter. "I thought I could just…and then…"

He sighed deeply and pulled her back into his body, his arms wrapped securely around her small frame. He was sure a regular Kokoa would have killed him for it, but she was far from her regular self, and in her place was a confused teen just the same as him. She was tired, she was stressed, and she clearly wasn't thinking straight. If she was, he doubted he would have been the one she confided in, nor would she even _consider_ kissing him. So noticed, what she needed right then wasn't him freaking out on her, she needed someone to hold and comfort her, and he wasn't about to turn her away. That would only do more damage. Besides, like it or not she was one of his family, and he would protect her like any one of them, even if it had to be from herself.

Predictably, she stiffened, but only for a moment as she soon relaxed and positioned herself more comfortably against him. For all the time she had spent trying to get to the realm of Morpheus, never in her life had she felt so…safe. Warm. She had thought nothing could ever match the rare hugs she received from her sister, and in a way it didn't. Moka gave her something no one else could in her acknowledgement and sisterly affection, rare as it was, and that was something that could never be replicated. In another way, however, _this_ catered to a part of her unreachable by her sister, unmatchable all the same. Almost against her will her eyelids started drooping, but now she _wanted_ to stay awake, she wanted to feel it more.

"…Thanks…idiot," she murmured softly, and before he could respond she was fast asleep.

Another sigh escaped him as he looked up through the canopy of leaves, to the brilliant glittering of the stars above. "You could have just said that in the first place," he grumbled gently.

There was even less chance of him getting any sleep than there was before, but he supposed that was okay since he had helped someone else in the same position find it, so something good came from the whole thing at least. Of course, before he didn't have to worry about Moka killing him, but that was just Fate acting up again.

Resigned to a sleepless night when all he wanted was rest, Tsukune turned his attention back to the redhead using him as a mattress, blanket, and teddy bear. She was going to be every bit as beautiful as her sister given some time; he only hoped they could have a chance at reconciliation. It was unlikely with their current situation, but it was another goal he would add to his list. She deserved happiness as much as any other, and if he could help her in that he would.

Unconsciously, his hold firmed on her as he glared out into the blackness. He had been naïve, far too naïve to think their family would only use physical means to get to them. With their latest attempt temporarily averted, something was bound to happen. He only wished he knew what.

All he could do was wait and pray that what he had was enough when the time came.

And, if he was lucky, maybe get some sleep too.

.

V^^^V

.

It was half past four in the morning when Isabella Valentine's slumber was rudely interrupted by the phone on her nuptial bed's side-table. Her family owned more than one business that ranked high enough to warrant such an early morning call, but that didn't make her enjoy being awakened at those hours any more than normal. Nonetheless, it was a burden of leadership, and one she had to deal with. She only knew that because her husband's calls came on the phone on his side of the bed. The one saving grace was it was bound to be important, as only a small number of people had the number being called, and they all knew it had better be good or there would be blood, in both the metaphorical _and_ literal sense.

Slapping out a hand to the receiver and trying to sound more awake then she felt, she said, "Yes?"

In the mutterings from the other end that followed, her husband rolled over, consigned to yet another late night call that would probably result in his wife rushing off for an important meeting that could have just as easily been done without her.

"_WHAT?_"

But then again, he had been wrong before.

Fabric rustled as Ivy moved to sit up properly, listening to the excuses being rambled by the caller. "I know it's hard to get straight information from the board, that's why we have you in that position! Are you tha—!"

She was cut off, which was rare for her when she got going, he would know.

"…What?"

That was said more quietly, he noted. Almost fearfully. He knew she was rubbing her forehead now, she always did during the more headache-inducing business calls.

"No, no, you did very well, thank you. If they blocked their own chairman it's to be expected that they didn't want _anyone_ to know before it had already happened, I understand. Thank you again, I know it wasn't easy."

A quick farewell later and the phone was hung up, where she groaned softly and fell back into her pillows. Since he couldn't say he wasn't interested anymore, he shuffled up to rest against the headboard. "Who was that?" he asked through a yawn.

One eye opened to regard him sleepily. "Our informant for Youkai Academy's board of directors."

He tensed. If he put what parts of the conversation he had heard into that context, a very different picture was painted. "How the hell did they manage to block out Mikogami? The academy is his baby; even if it's run through legitimate channels, everyone knows if they go against the academy they go against Tenmei Mikogami."

She sighed. "And Issa Shuzen knows that. He argued conflict of interest, likely greased a few wheels along the way, and there you go, the board chairman was locked out. It's not surprising. Mikogami may not have opposed Fairy Tale directly, but his assistant was seen plenty of times with Moka Shu…Akashiya and her group. It's one of the worst kept secrets that in all probability he was critical in gathering information that she and the Wongs used to cripple the organization, and that's not including the matters of public record where she and her friends were involved in the Outcast Ayashi incidents that led into Fairy Tale. There's no denying they've had interactions beyond simple school matters, and that's all Shuzen needed. Dark Lord or not, as the one pushing for peace, bureaucracy took out the great Exorcist in this case."

Now he was the one that wanted to rub his forehead. "So it already went through?"

"Just as we thought," she confirmed with a small smirk. "Their accounts have been frozen, tuition pulled, and they were told yesterday." She frowned deeply. "If only _we_ had been told earlier. I'd hate to think they would run into something without thinking, but including today they only have a _day_ left before school starts. Moka-chan's been out on her own for years, she'd probably do anything to keep from going back. She and that club of hers may have spearheaded the efforts against Fairy Tale, but the Wongs had their fair share of muscle involved and dealt with the legal _and_ illegal takeover part of things, so there must have been something she was paying them back for if they fell out of contact so quickly after everything was settled."

"Which would mean dealing with an evil they knew, but still an evil if they wanted money," her husband finished with a matching frown. "Not a decision to make lightly."

"Or when panicked and pushed into a corner. I hope they remembered that," she said as she worried the nail of her thumb between her teeth.

He chuckled with a shake of his head. "I doubt they would take that route until they had absolutely no other choice. Their pride would guarantee that. If we're only hearing about this now and he was under orders to tell us as soon as he knew anything, I'd imagine there's been no word out of the Academy?"

She rolled her eyes. "It was hard enough getting someone so close to the board and we did that years ago as a contingency. Mikogami is no fool; if anyone tried to get a spy near enough to be of any use they'd be picked out in an instant. The reason for the Outcast Ayashi was that they were _students_. They worked from a plan, but they didn't have access to the kind of information the academy would be working to protect. You said it yourself: Youkai Academy is _his_ domain."

His hands rose in surrender as he gave a rumbling chortle. "I know, I know. Just curious." With a quick shake of his long black hair, he was serious again. "So are you still planning on going yourself?"

She hummed an affirmative. "I'll wake Vincent at six. He wanted to apologize to them personally and we need to get there as early as we can within reason. Alexander doesn't think he's ready to face them yet, so we'll see what happens there."

"Stubborn boy."

"Just like his father," Ivy accused playfully.

"Just like his mother," he shot back easily. "I took your name when we finalized our bond, after all."

"Oh, so you're admitting you married up in the world, Aleister?"

He laughed as he threw away the covers and flipped himself over her, and while her face was set in its usual stony expression of superiority, her bright blue eyes twinkled with mirth. "Let's see: you, or the name I didn't care much for anyway? One of the notorious Valentines, steeped with controversy, scandals, honor, and sometimes even…_morals_," he gasped theatrically, and one of her eyebrows twitched. "Let my family stew, I got the better deal."

When he leaned down to kiss her she happily returned the gesture. "And were they right?" she questioned breathlessly as his feather-light caresses began making their way down her neck.

"Of course they were right," he replied with a smug smirk she could feel in her skin as he tickled her sides. "I just described our children!"

Laughter was forced out of her as she tried to shift away from his dancing fingers, but he would have none of it and secured her in place so he could steal another kiss, one far deeper and lasted far longer. This was one of the few good things about the early morning phone calls. If it could be handled later or right then through simple dictation, going back to sleep seemed like such a waste if their mate had been awakened as well. It was also a great stress reliever.

Knowing what was coming later in the day, she knew she would need it.

They had time.

…

There were two things that could be blamed for Vincent's early waking that morning. The first was the inordinate amount of stress the wait for the hammer to fall was causing; the second was much simpler, but was made worse when combined with the first. A life in the military, especially where he had been, heightened certain instincts and demanded a certain lifestyle. Sleeping at any hour and getting up at any hour was one of them. It would have been easier had the sword of Damocles been over _his_ head, but no, it was over another's, and because _he_ had brought attention to them. He had been trying to make amends for that mistake, and they were in a much better position than they would have been otherwise, but it was still something he had to live with.

Evangeline didn't mind his odd schedule. Sometimes she even got up with him, but above all she was a woman who loved her sleep and punished anyone who dared wake her before she was ready. Lucky for him, this was one of the days she chose to wake with him. Eating breakfast was always more comfortable with another body close by, particularly hers. The servants worked in shifts so there was always some available for whatever needed to be done, and if that happened to be making breakfast at five thirty in the morning, it was making breakfast at five thirty in the morning. Subtle music was floating in the background, a welcome reprieve from the usual clatter of utensils broken only by the occasional attempts at dialogue, a hard task when neither was much of a conversationalist so early. The energy would better used later.

Alexander wasn't the only one training; when he wasn't being sent on various tasks of tedium by his mother, Vincent was sparring with Eva. Not that he had ever doubted her claims, but she was far more knowledgeable than she EVER let on, and she had been proving that every day since he had asked for her assistance. Even now he didn't understand how a woman like her had chosen someone like him, more so after what she told him the night they bound their blood, even if he had done everything he could think of to try and be worthy of her attention. With her new rosary in the form of a charm bracelet around her wrist, her eyes had turned a muted green and her hair sunshine yellow, but even without her power—or what she allowed others to see of her power—she still mopped the floor with him. He would never get to her level, but he could damn well try.

"Well well, this is a surprise," came Isabella's unique drawl as she sauntered into the dining room, her husband close behind. "Here I thought I would have to get you out of bed myself."

Vincent wasn't stupid, and those words set off a whole lot of alarms in his mind. "It's happening?"

"It happened," she corrected, and the only indication of the strain on her nonchalance was a slight tightness around her eyes. It was enough. "Yesterday."

He paled. "What are we still doing here then! We need to leave!"

"At…just after six?" Eva countered calmly after a glance at the clock. "What teenager in their right mind is up this early during Summer Break?"

"I don't know, maybe ones that have just had their lives upended?" he retorted sarcastically, and she gave him a dry look as she dabbed at her lips with her napkin.

"All the more reason for them to sleep. Who knows when they got to bed after that? We aim for regular business hours, then even if they aren't awake we can speak to the headmaster."

"We?" Ivy queried, brow raised. "I wasn't aware you wanted to come along."

Isabella Valentine had lived over two centuries, seen things that would make hardened criminals cry for their mommies, but she still felt herself take an involuntary step back at the sudden ferocity in Evangeline's dark jade eyes. The exotic vampiress and her son had been together for years, and recently took that bond to the deepest level possible for a Vampire, yet it was just dawning on her how little she knew about her son's blood-mate. Those eyes had seen things not even she could comprehend, and seemed to look right through her like she was a child in front of a disappointed parent.

"I would meet this boy that defeated my husband. It goes without saying that I'm coming along," she explained primly as she stood from her seat, sinuous grace in motion.

Her father-in-law had obviously seen the same thing his wife had, for his brow was furrowed. "It's fine, but…is something wrong, Evangeline?"

A small smirk played on her lips at the question. "Not at all, why do you ask?"

"You seem…different, than usual," he hesitantly settled on.

A flash of emotion too fast to catch flickered over her, then to their surprise Vincent was behind her with his arms around her waist, cradling his chin in the crook of her neck like the lover he was. Whatever she might have been feeling was redirected into a pleased hum as he placed a kiss directly over her pulse point, and the smoldering look she set on him served to distinctly amuse the parents, Ivy more than Aleister.

"And here's my proof he takes after you," she told her husband haughtily, to which he could only laugh and bow.

"So he inherited my taste for strong, independent women and likes to show them that? How terrible."

"I have to admit, I can think of worse things," Evangeline commented smartly, and earned a chuckle from Vincent and his father.

Isabella gave her own quiet laughter as she inclined her head to concede the point, but that didn't stop her from saying, "And strong, independent women tend to have baggage those men that like them help them with."

To her credit, the other woman didn't do anything that might have given her away, not even the slightest flinch or twitch. In its place an entertained glint had taken residence in her ageless gaze, and again Ivy felt like an apprentice in front of a master. It was infuriating, but beyond that it was actually quite frightening, for she had been sharing residence with this expert actress for nearly two decades and been none the wiser to this side of her. That was rendered inconsequential when Vincent chose to speak up, his fierce orange eyes dark and foreboding.

"And that baggage is for that man and that man alone, unless the woman decides otherwise. Isn't that right, Mother?"

Caught in her own life, she tittered softly and nodded. "Of course, how silly of me."

Her son trusted Evangeline with his life and loved her with his whole heart. If that meant nothing towards the vampiress' credibility, she might as well give up her son right then, and she had no intention of doing that.

The small smile filled with gratitude and admiration Eva was giving Vincent certainly leant credence to her decision.

_She may have her secrets, but who doesn't?_ Ivy thought rhetorically. She certainly did.

"I for one hope this morning isn't a sign of things to come," Aleister joked, and it had the intended effect of bringing laughter back to the room.

But the words stayed in the back of their minds, and they would soon find out how right they were.

.

V^^^V

.

Kokoa awoke to find herself under the covers on her futon, not fully rested, but…at peace. It hadn't been the best dream she had ever had, but it was far from the worst. Usually whenever the idiot was in her dreams there was far less clothing involved and she woke up relaxed in a whole different way; last night her subconscious conjured up the warmth and security she had seen him share with the rest of his lovers. It was…nicer than she thought it would be. And they had kissed. They never kissed in her dreams, outside of the ones the annoying Nightwalker high-jacked. They would ravage each other until their throats were sore and they couldn't move, but they never kissed. That was nicer than she thought it would be as well. Much nicer.

She was scratching her belly as she moved to sit up when she felt it. 'It' was a curious, crusty substance on her shirt that had no reason to be there. Slowly, numbly, she stretched out the material so she could get a better look, and she knew instantly what it was. Mucus. Mucus and tears.

It had really happened. It had ALL happened! He really had left the room in the middle of the night; she really had followed him; he really had listened to her cry out her fears and pour out her heart; he really had held her near and eased her worries…and she really had kissed him.

She buried her face in her hands and moaned pitifully.

_Sure, he has to be a great kisser too!_

How was she supposed to face her beloved sister after this? Would she understand? Would she kick her to kingdom come? Would she even let her live? Kokoa didn't know, but she did know she would soon find out.

It was almost eight o'clock, so she had slept for a little under five hours before her body woke her up. Judging by the lack of other people in the room, she wasn't the only one that had happened to; a side effect of their early training program over the break. If they followed what they had been doing since the moron came back, they would be showering and getting ready to meet for breakfast right about now, so other than some fatigue she should be able to do the same and not miss anything. Not that she didn't want to just go back to bed, but it was better to bite the bullet sooner rather than later and save her the trouble of screwing up a well-maintained schedule.

She sighed heavily and made her way to her room for a much needed bath, but couldn't resist the urge to touch her lips along the way.

This was bad. This was very, very bad.

…

_No,_ Kokoa was forced to correct herself when she met up with the others, _this is even worse._

She had seen the dark rings on the idiot's face, but clearly there hadn't been enough light to do them justice. Out in the illumination of the day it was obvious that he hadn't gotten _any_ sleep the night before. His skin, normally so healthy and tan was drooped and blackened with stress under his bloodshot eyes, and while most of theirs were in a similar state as a reminder of their crying, his had been offered no respite and that worsened the condition to the 'week without sleep' point. In other words, he looked like death warmed over.

It was absolutely mind-boggling to the redhead that he could look dead on his feet and yet he had still been exactly what she needed when her own sleep-deprived brain had decided to short-circuit her inhibitions. How was she supposed to get out of lust with the idiot when he kept making her feel so…

_NO! No love here! NONE!_

It didn't help that she was still mildly cranky when looking over the situation, but that was hard to hold on to when she kept involuntarily staring at his lips. They were so soft, forceful and confident, and there had been no shortage of skill there to back those up either. He had dominated her mouth like it had always been his, and done things with his tongue that made her thighs tremble just thinking about. Then she would remember _who_ she was thinking about and promptly shake the fantasies from her head, but not before she earned a few odd looks from most of the group.

Inconspicuously creeping to his side as he lagged behind the rest of them in his obvious exhaustion, her cheeks warmed when he cast a sidelong glance at her. The indignation she had tried to work up at him fled without protest at the lack of condemnation she saw in his expression; if anything he looked at her even gentler than usual. Since her sister hadn't immediately pounced on her when she came into view, it was a fair bet to assume he hadn't mentioned anything to her yet, and that was more than she deserved after the way she treated him at most every opportunity.

"You still look like crap," she muttered quietly, and heard him snort a tired laugh.

"So I've been told."

"No seriously, did you even _try_ to get to sleep?"

"Of course I did!" he snapped, then quickly pinched the bridge of his nose just like he had earlier as he fought off the pounding in his head. "I've tried, I have. I even got close too, during my bath this morning of all times, which was stupid of me. If I _had_ fallen asleep I could have been in trouble, but still, the relaxation was a godsend. It helped, but…come on, you know what it's like!"

That she did, and she winced sympathetically. Not being able to sleep when sleep was all that was wanted was the most immensely frustrating thing there was, and it led to headaches, irritability, speech impediments, and a mass of other problems if held long enough. Dementia could begin sooner than the thirty-hour point, and death by lack of sleep was just as possible as death by starvation. All in all, lacking sleep both sucked, and was _dangerous._

"How you holding up?" she asked, her tone soft as to not aggravate his headache, and so that no one else would hear.

He looked relieved at her caution, though admittedly he didn't know about the second reason she had for it. "Not bad, all things considered. Moka hasn't taken her usual breakfast yet, so that's helped. I'm not running on much right now, so I'm twitchy, I'm thirsty, and after what I did yesterday I'm aching in places so deep I probably couldn't do the smallest spell if I tried. Other than those, I'm pretty normal."

Her eyebrow twitched in annoyance. "And how, exactly, is any of that _normal?_ You're messed up, you just admitted it! You should be in bed, not out here!"

"But I can't sleep!" he retorted in an equally harsh whisper. "If I can't sleep, I'd rather be doing something than constantly rolling over!"

She stopped, grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and tugged him down to her level, inches away from her face. "Do you think you're doing anyone any favors by doing that? You moron, you're cannon fodder like you are now! With that rosary of yours, we need you in top form!"

He glared at her. "Don't you think I—"

A throat clearing caught their attention, and they simultaneously turned their heads to see the others had stopped too, and were giving them inquisitive looks coupled rather pointedly with tapping feet.

"Something you'd like to tell us?" Kurumu asked with a grin.

Upon realizing what she was talking about—their position—Kokoa practically threw him away from her, which had even Tsukune laughing.

"That's more like it. What were you two whispering about back here anyway?"

"Nothing important," Kokoa said dismissively, inwardly praying her flush wasn't as noticeable as it felt. "I was just telling this idiot he should be in bed, not out here."

At that Moka changed from amused to concerned as she walked up to Tsukune. She had noticed it of course, it was hard not to, but if her _sister_ of all people—the eternal devil's advocate when it came to aforementioned male—was commenting on it, there had to be good reason. "She's right, Tsukune. You look like you're going to fall over any minute, are you sure you should be with us today?"

"I'm—I-I'm fine," he stammered through a yawn, and when only more worry was directed his way, he tried to smile disarmingly. "I'm fine, really. Let's go get some food, that'll help."

Rei held his gaze long enough to make him squirm, but eventually she nodded and they turned to continue walking down the road from the dorms to the school. Tsukune sighed in relief and made to follow, when the wind shifted.

His first footfall echoed hauntingly in the sudden, enveloping _silence_ that fell over the academy.

The breeze died; the rustling of leaves stilled; any animals that called Youkai Academy home hid wherever they could, not a sound between them. The atmosphere gained a vibration, as if someone had grabbed the air itself and pulled it taut like a guitar string, allowing no noise but the deep-seated resonance that pounded in the ears of the school's occupants no matter where they were. The Newspaper Club spun around wildly in search of the cause, and like the land and animals around them, they too froze when they found it.

Tsukune and Rei were statues on the ground, not merely stiff, but absolutely _rigid_. The steel of Rei's irises had expanded to take up the whole of her eyes, split only by the draconian slits that had retaken their rightful place on the dragon. Her brow creased with rage, solidifying into crests of white scales that wrapped around to her cheekbones and down her neck, where her shirt became a casualty in the explosive release of great ashen wings. It's loss revealed the scales had overtaken more of her skin than first thought, cupping over her growing chest and down her abdomen like sensual armor until a tail fell to the dirt from beneath her loose skirt, shredding her bike shorts in the process. Razor sharp nails sprouted from feet covered like boots, just as talons begged for blood from her fingers. The hybridization of her human and reptilian forms was just as beautiful as it was deadly, but Moka couldn't look away from her blood-mate enough to notice.

His pupils were mere pinpricks in their golden-brown surroundings, his teeth barred and sharpening by the second. Long hair that had yet to be cut thickened, went jagged and feral as his breathing quickened. Like once before, veins pulsed up from under his flesh, thick and angry, and seeing it so close, they looked unsettlingly similar to…vines. Or _tattoos_. He shuddered once, just once, and long blades sprung from his fingertips as the vibration picked up in intensity and he spun to whatever it was he had noticed.

It almost looked like he hesitated then, but his quiet growl of, "Isabella…" was filled with a rage colder and more focused than anything they had ever felt from him.

This took place in heartbeats, and an instant later the reverberation was gone. Another sound replaced it. It was the crisp sting of a thunderclap, the roar of displaced air like a gathering tsunami, and it condensed into a moving wave that could be visibly seen crashing towards their location. With the speed it all took place, no one was prepared for the rush of wind as it bowled them over. No one but two. When they looked up, Tsukune and Rei were gone.

They weren't far though, and they soon saw what had gotten them so agitated.

There would be no mercy this time.

.

V^^^V

.

Evangeline walked alongside her husband and mother-in-law through the grounds of Youkai Academy, down from the dimensional tunnel to where they could see the school's proud towers. Two of the three were in a daze as they stared at the scenery around them, confusion and amazement warring on their faces, and Vincent cocked an eyebrow at their open stares.

"Is something wrong?" he asked. Sure he might have been confused when they chose to walk from the tunnel rather than drive, but at the time he hadn't thought much of it. Now the deeper they went the more entranced Eva became and the more his mother squinted at the flora, even going so far as to run the leaves through her fingers.

To Isabella's surprise, it was Eva that answered. "The Grand Barrier isn't just a barrier, it nearly qualifies as a dimensional anomaly. The school itself is almost literally cut off from the outside world. Since it's so large, atmospheric pressures can still create the occasional storm, but when it comes to any actual seasons the weather doesn't really change. Most of the vegetation died quickly once the barrier was put in place, but look at it now! Vincent, it's not just sunny, this is _summer!_"

He paused thoughtfully. "Hmm, so, does this mean the Grand Barrier is weakening?"

"No," Ivy replied distractedly, still looking over the amazingly healthy plant life as they walked by. "If that was happening there would be a lot more panic. Something different is going on here."

"Nature found its way back," Eva said softly, so softly neither would have been able to hear it had they been regular humans.

Vincent bit his tongue when his mother asked, "What?"

The blonde sighed languidly and barely resisted the urge to throw back her head and stretch her arms to the welcoming embrace around her. Whatever was at work here it was powerful, powerful and _glorious_.

"Magic," he explained as casually as he thought he could. "She means this is probably an effect of True Magic."

"A witch?" the blue-eyed vampiress stated in shock, before she turned contemplative. "Actually, now that you mention it, the headmaster's assistant is a half-blo—"

"Witch," Evangeline interrupted in a snap, then blinked at the vehemence in her own voice. That was the only sign of her slip before she was back to her regular sultry and mellow self. "You said it yourself, she's a witch."

Ivy looked at her long and hard for a moment, then nodded shortly. "Of course."

Their walk resumed in peace as they kept examining the landscape, and as a new breeze wafted by Eva muttered, "This doesn't feel like a witch's magic though. This is…what _is_ this? What could do…"

Her words trailed off when Nature went chillingly quiet and the very air started vibrating around them.

"…What is that?"

As they looked around they saw the school was now in their view, and Vincent's eyes widened in horror.

"LOO—!"

Whatever he tried to yell was drowned out in the deafening howl made by the wall of wind as it washed over them, and when it died down neither Ivy or Vincent were where they should be. As Eva regained her bearings, finding them was her top priority, and it wasn't difficult. Vincent had been tackled brutally from where he had once stood, rolled end over end in a grapple he had no time to prepare for and was now trapped beneath a half-naked winged girl strategically covered in pasty scales, and Isabella…Isabella had her own problems.

Indeed, it was taking most of Isabella Valentine's considerable experience to keep from crying out in pain, because she had been literally pinned to a tree by a livid young man that looked like he had seen better days. The foot-long blades grown from his fingers had been pushed through her right shoulder with such force that the fingers themselves were knuckle-deep in her bone and sinew, effectively making her preferred sword arm useless. Since she had been in the process of raising her arms to protect herself from the wind, her left arm was in bad shape too, skewered above her head straight through both bones of her forearm with his other hand, though thankfully only the blades had penetrated there. Her head and legs were free, but in their position moving against him could only have bad results. She would begin bleeding significantly worse once the blockages were removed, and she would need a ready source of blood once he did that because she wasn't so optimistic as to hope he hadn't hit at least one artery. She had been caught completely by surprise, and she could have hit herself because she should have expected the hostility. She just hadn't expected it to be directed at her so early.

"Don't. Move," he hissed with so much malice even Evangeline shivered. "None of you move so much as a muscle or I swear I will _end_ you right—here."

Ivy fought through the pain to keep staring unflinchingly into his burning bloodshot eyes, and pity welled inside her. She knew what the young man in front of her was going through. She knew why he was reacting like he was. Swallowing hard, she did her best to keep her voice steady. "Aono-san, correct? Tsukune Aono?"

"No, you don't get to talk," he growled. "This time _I'm_ doing the talking."

Evangeline tried diplomacy given that she was the only one not being actively threatened. "Please, Aono-san, let us explain—!"

"SHUT! UP!" the former human snarled, though he never turned away from Ivy. "Alex came the first time, and I kept Moka from killing him! Alex came _back_ with his brother, and _again_ I let them live! Now _Vincent_ comes back with his wife _and_ his mother, the two women he _knows_ are stronger than him, and so help me God I am NOT going to make the same mistake again if I have the choice!"

There was more pain in those words than in Ivy's whole body, and that was saying something. The mother in her wanted to take the boy into her arms and tell him everything would be alright, and had their visit gone anywhere near to plan it might have been possible. She could see the stress in and under his eyes; he had obviously gotten very little, if any, sleep, and they were still rimmed red with the remnants of shed tears. He was trembling, barely keeping himself from openly shaking, probably on a high of adrenaline that was doing nothing for the state of his body. As he was, there was hardly any uncertainty in her that he would follow through with his threat, but she had to try. That was the whole reason they had come to the academy! "Please, if you would just listen to—!"

"WHAT PART OF SHUT UP DIDN'T YOU UNDERSTAND?" Tsukune screamed as he twisted the blades in her left arm, forcing her to grimace through a grunt of pain. "Do you know what we've been through because of you? _DO YOU?_ I _let_ your kids live, I could have killed them at _any _time before they left, and then we get letters telling us Moka and Kokoa been pulled out of school! Then _you_ show up the day after that happens? Do you think we're _stupid?_" He laughed, almost manically, like he was just as sad as he was angry, bordering between disappointment and insanity. "Kokoa said my kindness would come back to bite me. Guess she was right!"

Evangeline didn't like the way this had been going nor where it seemed to be heading. Vincent had been forcibly plunged into the young man's memories, so naturally Tsukune must have seen some of Vincent's too during the time he was doing that. In his mind then, he was dealing with a vampire he had barely defeated the first time, whom had also brought his powerful wife and _very_ powerful mother. Of course, Vincent didn't know the things he did now back then, so it made sense that Isabella would be the first one Tsukune would go for.

This situation needed to be diffused, and fast. If she needed to be the diffuser, then so be it.

Moving her arms closer together without being noticed was child's play for someone like her, so a back-up plan was in place, but before she could do anything to actually help the situation, dagger-like nails were being held to her throat and a cold tip was pressed to her back, right over her heart. When her eyes followed the arm those deadly nails were coming from, it wasn't hard to see the young woman was a Succubus, and definitely a Nightwalker. She was beautiful on a plane difficult to even _classify_, sexuality practically _radiated_ from her, but perhaps most beautiful of all were her magnificent violet eyes, cold and flinty as she looked back. This woman would kill her at a moment's notice. A quick peek to the side showed her the other assailant, and that was a Snow Woman if ever Eva saw one. Creamy skin nearly snow white, frigid blue eyes; she was a stunning representation of her race. Something seemed…different about them, however. She _knew_ what they were, she was sure of it, but some part of her deep inside didn't want to recognize that.

The sky darkened as thousands of black feathers flapped on hundreds of wings, and an enormous number of ravens landed on every branch they could, staring noiselessly, closing the showdown in. Two more women entered the circle; one tall and gorgeous, the other short and cute. A raven identical to the others sat on the shoulder of the older of the two, while winged tarot cards floated menacingly behind the younger. One wielded a book, the other a staff. Both emanated ill intent. They were witches, without doubt, and if she was reading the impossible amounts of energy they were sending off correctly, Vincent was lucky they hadn't gotten involved in his previous fight. They weren't just witches, they were virtually Arch-mages! Again, something she was sure she knew, and again, something part of her disagreed with.

Her blood turned to ice when she saw what was around the neck of the elder witch.

Then Moka Akashiya herself walked on to the scene, regal as ever even sealed, with her sister beside her. They lost some color when they saw who the Black and White Duet had under guard, and more when they saw exactly what Tsukune had done, but they didn't stop nor reprimand them. Instead, Kokoa moved to support Rei, her trusty bat already transformed into the most intimidating mace he could, while Moka carefully slid behind Tsukune and gently touched his shoulder. Eyes as hard as the emeralds they resembled scanned the damage he had inflicted, and when at last she turned her attention to the trapped vampiress, Ivy would have smiled if the gesture would have had anything but detrimental results. Moka Akashiya was to be respected, rosary or not.

"When I saw the Cerberus weapon Vincent used, I knew we were dealing with the Valentines," she said conversationally, spitefully keeping any suffix from the name she used. "He said he was the son of Isabella Valentine, but I didn't think we'd actually meet you. Even I had heard of your skill before I left, and I was a little kid. I would say it's nice to meet you, but I think you can understand why I won't under the circumstances."

Ivy huffed a small laugh as she nodded briskly, careful not to aggravate the young man glaring death at her. She had worked through worse pain before, but it was far from comfortable and breathing was becoming a laborious process. Despite that, she knew she could bear through it all day if she had to, provided he kept her wounds blocked enough that she continued to bleed slowly, like she was doing. Pain wasn't a new thing to her, and in all honesty she had been through worse before. The second he pulled those stopgaps from her however, she would find herself in trouble very quickly.

Moka knew that too, with Inner right beside her. "So, Isabella of Clan Valentine, twice has your family moved against mine, do you mean to make it thrice? At the first you could argue your son didn't know of my bond, but when I told him he didn't bat an eyelash. He _kissed_ me, disregarded my claim, and tried to _kill_ my _blood-mate!_" she hissed, growing progressively angrier with each passing word, and while Isabella had heard all of her son's transgressions straight from his mouth, she still winced at every mark against them. With a steadying breath taken to calm, the list continued. "Why that man allowed it I'll never know, but your son returned after I had shown him his place, this time with his older, stronger brother. Tsukune showed them mercy Ur…_I_ never would have given them when they were defeated, mercy he didn't have to give! Strike two had _two_ members of your family, and here at strike three we find ourselves with three of you, and the matriarch of her own branch no less!"

Her expression blanked dangerously as she strode as close to Isabella as she could get with the other woman's position, her emerald eyes dark with hate unfamiliar to the Outer version of Moka. "Yesterday all I hold dear was almost torn from me, and today in you come. Coincidence? I think in this case I'm going to have to agree with my _blood-mate_. So, _Isabella_ of Clan _Valentine_," she spat as her lips spread threateningly to expose her lengthening fangs, "I want you to give me—one—good—reason—not to _TEAR OFF YOUR HEAD WHERE YOU STAND!"_

Everyone flinched at the sudden volume her voice had taken, but Eva noticed with some unease that the Succubus and Snow Woman guarding her had sprouted small, grim, grins. Upon further examination, it was something shared by all of the group.

That was enough. _This has gone on too long; I have to stop this before they do something they'll regret,_ thought Evangeline, the only one currently able to do anything should worst come to worst.

"Hold!" she bellowed piercingly, and such was the authority behind that command that everything stopped at once, sole focus now on the blonde vampiress. She stared back fearlessly. "If you had let us speak earlier you would have already had your reason. Step back, we mean you no harm."

"Lies!" called a snarl from the side, followed by a blast of heat. Eva saw it was the winged one holding her husband that had yelled it, with only her head turned enough to see who she was addressing. Eyes like a snake glared at her, not even reptilian in the vampiric sense, but wholly snakelike to the point where there was no white visible at all. Coupled with the glow behind her teeth, what Eva now saw was only a young teenager struck a terribly unnerving sight. "I refuse to stand down to the likes of you! 'Twas _he_ whom humiliated me in front of my partner!" she shouted, indicating Vincent, whose arms she still had held solidly above his head as flames danced on her tongue. "'Twas _he_ whom spoke venom in a tone of honey; gave no consideration to what he was attempting, what he threatened, what he was _disrespecting!_ You wish to 'speak'? Where were these 'words' when two degenerates that bear your name assumed themselves to be above the tribulations of _years?_ When a love forged unto iron in the fires of trial after trial was so callously cast aside by those unable to appreciate its worth? WHERE WERE THOSE 'WORDS' WHEN MY FAMILY RISKED FRACTURE FOR YOUR…_IGNORANCE!_ YOUR _PRIDE?_"

They were like physical blows to the three Valentines, and their throats felt oddly tight as they tried to arrange a reply.

Tsukune didn't let them. "The truth hurts, doesn't it?" he said quietly. "Every fiber of my being is screaming for your blood, and honestly, I'm half tempted to give in. You know what though? I just don't care. You can try again and again and again, and I'll be there every single time, stopping you. I'll take your pride and I'll rip it into so many pieces you'll be wishing for death by the time you give up. You have no idea what we're capable of, so get out of my sight and go to hell, before I send you there myself."

That said, he tore his blades from the tree they were stuck in, mercilessly ripping them from Isabella at the same time, leaving her to try and keep pressure on her shoulder with her other injured appendage as she gasped for breath through the sudden pain. Kurumu and Mizore shared a look, then removed their weapons from their enemy's fatal points and gestured to the other vampiress, but they held themselves ready just in case. With Rei, she glared down at the sealed form of Vincent with enough fury to kill lesser men, and punched him once across the face before sinking her fist up to the wrist in the hard ground beside his head, just to show him he had gotten off lightly. She removed herself from on top of him and kicked him over to where the rest of his family was. If they tried anything, they were dead to her. It was only a matter of proving that to the rest of the world.

Vincent quickly tore a sleeve off his shirt to make a rough bandage tight enough to stem the bleeding on his mother's left arm, and removed the shirt entirely to drape it over her shoulder and press his hand to her back to aid in the pressure she was already applying to her front. At least he still had his undershirt. He had more than a passing knowledge of field first-aid, and they had come prepared if something went wrong, so there was a fully stocked medical kit, including refrigerated blood-bags in their car. It would be enough to get her home, where she could receive better service. He wanted to stay and talk more than anything, but what could he say to their accusations? They were all true, so true it did actually hurt, but when he looked at his wife, to his surprise he saw no hint of admitting defeat. She had a plan.

And she did. She should have realized it sooner, but the rants against them made it so very clear.

There were no words for what had been done. Actions spoke louder than words ever could.

Consequently, with hardly a pause she turned back to look at the infamous group they had come to see standing side by side, each one a support for the other, ready for anything. Anything but what she did.

Falling to one knee, she bowed at the waist, lowered her head and exposed her neck.

Moka and Kokoa gasped loudly, almost unable to believe what they were seeing even as Isabella and Vincent followed her lead after a few moments. Since the others could see how much whatever the visitors were doing was affecting their friends, the rest of the Newspaper Club was able to relax slightly, though that didn't stop their confusion over what was going on. From the way the two sisters were reacting, it was like they were seeing ghosts.

Moka shook herself free of the shock first, turning to Tsukune with her rosary stretched out to him in her hand, and though the adrenaline was wearing off and he was realizing just how far he had pushed himself, he quickly set the inner self of his blood-mate free. That was a task in and of itself with bladed fingers, but he managed. What Alexander had said about her earlier was proven to the other Valentines most efficiently when her incredible aura pulsed to enormous life in the atmosphere.

_**"You have five minutes,"**_ the unsealed vampire declared shortly as she crossed her arms under her generous bust.

Eva nodded courteously, then glanced over her shoulder to her mother-in-law and husband. "Vincent, take her back to the car. If she thinks she can stay after she's been patched up and has some more blood in her, come back. If not, go home. I'll be fine."

Knowing they were on limited time, neither said anything against it, but Ivy did stagger as quickly as she could to her son's mate and pressed her bloody hand into one of Eva's. "I give you permission to act on behalf of our Clan in my stead. You know what we have discussed; I trust your judgment." A flash came from their joined hands, and she hastily returned it to her shoulder before being led off by Vincent. She didn't think she would need to go all the way home, but she wasn't taking any chances. They were out of sight within the minute.

_Good_, Eva thought with relief. _Not how I might have planned it, but it did give me a way to talk to them alone. First things first._

"I'd like to extend our deepest apologies for what happened. If you'll allow it later, I know Vincent would like to say it personally, but I don't know when the boya—_Alexander_ will feel ready to stand before you. He was…troubled greatly after your last encounter."

The vision of beauty she knew had to be the Kurumu of Alex's recounting scoffed openly. "Yeah, Alex-chan's troubled alright. In the _head_," she mocked.

"You would know, wouldn't you, _Nightwalker?_" Evangeline countered with a raised brow, and allowed a small smirk to overtake her at their wide-eyed expressions. They were back on their guard now, she noted, suddenly unsure of the upper hand they had thought they had. _Wise,_ she conceded inwardly._ Pointless, but wise._

"H-How?" Kurumu stuttered, while Moka's eyes narrowed threateningly.

The blonde simply shrugged dismissively as she pointed at the blue-haired young woman. "Nightwalker," she repeated. Mizore was next. "Snow Woman." Then Yukari and Ruby. "Witches." And Tsukune gulped when her gaze fell on Kokoa, Moka…then him. "…Vampires."

His transformation failed as the lightheadedness of her revelation combined with his overtaxed state, and the only thing that kept him from falling to all fours was his companions' quick reflexes.

"You idiot, I told you! You should be in bed!" the redhead among them snapped as her green eyes darted from him to the enemy vampiress standing across from them.

Tsukune grimaced as he pushed his shaking legs to support him again, and frowned slightly at the younger woman. "Not the time, Kokoa," he warned breathlessly. "Every little bit counts. If I had been in bed we wouldn't have gotten rid of Isabella so easily. You have no idea what Vincent's seen her do."

"Though as we said, it wasn't necessary," Eva cut in smoothly. "We're here to talk. Had we meant to fight though, yes, you would have taken out a big player."

Moka tried to edge surreptitiously into a better stance, and her lips curled in distaste when the fair-haired Valentine flickered her sight over to her with an amused smile. _**"But not the biggest, isn't that right?"**_

The ground disappeared in a sea of light that spread from the kneeling blonde's form, and though the Newspaper Club tried to do something to defend themselves, there was no time and no telling where or what was going to happen. In seconds, they all stood motionless, held at sword and knifepoint from nearly every angle by the variety of women inexplicably around them, all wearing maid's uniforms and armed with far more than just _bladed_ weaponry.

"Be at ease, this was merely a demonstration." True to her word, the armaments were pulled away, but the significance had already been shown. Had she so desired, there would have been very little they could have done to save themselves. She hoped that finally got it through to them, if not… "Now, as you might know, more than one seal can be applied to a person at any given time, and their strength is often exponential, not cumulative," she intoned respectfully as her hand once more moved to the charm bracelet that held her rosary. With a flourish it was released and her power rushed into the air, turning yellow hair the lightest shade of platinum blonde and murky green eyes blood red. "When it comes to seals, anyone with the right knowledge and ability can use them, but only a select few can use magic—_True_ Magic—to aid it." There it was Yukari and Ruby to suck in a tight breath, and Eva's scarlet gaze bore into them as she said the incantation she hadn't spoken aloud in centuries.

The explosion of Youki just about blinded them, and when it faded so too did the complexions of the club. No trace of color was left in what had once been merely silver-blonde hair. Her power was alive, fluxing and wrapped around her like a cloak of pure energy, and even though she was the one lowering herself before them, her entire presence seemed to have changed.

Tsukune, Rei, Ruby, and Yukari could care less about that. They were struck dumb, listening to the solo radiating from the woman, a solo in a song they knew very, very well.

"My name is Evangeline Athanasia Katherine Valentine née McDowell, and I was born in Scotland in 1403, a witch."

Even Moka went white. They were dealing with an _Elder_ Vampire, over _six hundred years old_, and one that had been _turned_ like Tsukune at that!

"I won't drag you through the whole history, but after I lost my parents when I was eight I was taken in by the lord of a nearby castle and made his ward. It turns out he was a Vampire, which was why his land survived so well during the Hundred Years War, and he had developed a certain…curiosity…when it came to witches. You see, he knew about Blood Magic, like all Vampires, but he had also delved into the other realms of magic, specifically why witches and wizards needed foci to use _their_ magic. Therefore, it would be an interesting experiment then to see what would happen to one were they to be given a Vampire's magic-rich blood, wouldn't it? Oh he experimented on other Youkai, make no mistake, but the magic of witches was of particular interest to him.

"So I grew up, unknowingly being given the blood of my master at seemingly random times and in different doses, though naturally I never figured this out until later when I read his notes. The blackouts caused by his blood were what let him continue, and I was young and easily manipulated, so I didn't think to question him when he said he was looking into my 'problem'. I could be in pain for days after some of the later injections, but eventually it would go away as he took care of me, so I didn't doubt him. As skilled as my Vincent's silver tongue is, that man could tell you poison was fruit punch and you would accept it without a single reservation," she recalled with a bitter smirk. A deep, tired sigh came from her as she stood to her full height, and by wordless command the maids stepped to her side as one. "It all came to a head when one day I simply…woke up…and I was no longer just a witch. You can imagine what his shock must have been like when in my hysteria, what he had wanted to study ended up killing him."

No one could bring themselves to talk, though their mouths were moving with that intention. In his sleep-deprived state Tsukune was the only one lacking that condition, but his sunken eyes stared with impossible clarity at the woman who was looking right back at him. "You weren't always a Vampire," he murmured, and cocked his head to the side like the novel idea hadn't even occurred to him until he voiced it.

She smiled politely and bobbed her head once, mindful of the multitude of things that were likely running through the young man's mind. "Just like you."

They all stiffened, and this time it was Ruby to take point while the hundreds of crows around them shuffled ominously to remind the potential threat that she wasn't just dealing with who she saw. "_How do you know that?_" she demanded tightly, her book held in a white-knuckled grip. "For that matter, how did you hide what you are? How did you seal yourself from fully awakening even after a rosary's release?"

"To answer your first question: the Nightwalker made a mistake," Evangeline replied primly, even as said Nightwalker scowled at the slight. "Well, not so much that she made a mistake, but that Aono-san over there did. He forced his own experiences, his _memories_, into the minds of my husband and his brother, and they didn't immediately go away after the fact. Vincent had nightmares for days afterward, but a couple days in we realized Alex wasn't suffering the same. While Vincent's seemed to get more intense, _his_ were receding."

"And why would that mean anything?" Yukari queried as the cards behind her fluxed in agitation. Despite coming prepared she had been unable to do anything when the vampiress across from her had summoned a veritable militia, but she doubted even guns would be able to match what her cards were currently capable of.

"I was a budding Aura Reader when I was turned," the other woman confessed, to the young mage's shock, "and it was a skill that was boosted drastically afterwards. With a connection to both Blood and Nature, I can see…very deeply." Both witches on the other side gulped softly, and perhaps inadvertently glimpsed over at the only man in the confrontation. Eva noticed it though. "Yes, with the right tutelage and practice I'm sure he could do the same. Of course, if I had had that ability back then I never would have gone with the man that would eventually change me, but if I didn't do that then I wouldn't have the ability. Ironic, no?"

Letting loose another soulful sigh, the ancient Youkai ran her fingers through her startlingly silver hair. "At any rate, what happened was the boya had already found out your friend over there was a vampire, but for whatever reason you had the Nightwalker erase it, correct?"

_**"Yes,"**_ Moka snipped through grit teeth.

Eva chuckled. "Ah the impatience of youth. I'm getting to it, just wait. Now where was I? Ah yes: she did a good job, I'd go so far as to say a _perfect_ job, but because of that he wasn't able to see the true extent of what was shared. _Any_ clue to Aono-san's origin or species was expunged, and even if he hears it, he can't comprehend it. Where Vincent was able to feel the pain of water, Alex didn't even know the memory had been there to go through. And when we considered your friend's transformations and who was around him, I knew we were dealing with a Vampire, and not just any vampire, but a Blood Sage. Vincent put the rest together, because it isn't often you get to feel the agony of every cell in your body slowly breaking apart…and the thirst that came later."

He shuddered at the memory as his face scrunched up in pain. In his mind's eye he could still see Mizore lying on the wet ground in an alcove of ice, her skin sallow and breathing all but nonexistent, and most importantly _his_ fault; the only time the thirst ever got the better of him. As if she could see his thoughts, he flinched back when a cold hand touched his, but the frost maiden would have none of it and weaved their fingers together, even though his were still wet with Isabella's blood. Despite himself, a grateful smile thick with fatigue drew itself on his lips, and the glare he leveled on Evangeline was so dark even the expressionless maids around her twitched.

"If you know all of that, why are you here?" he barked. "Why go through all this?"

She resisted the urge to rub her temples. They had plenty of reason to be wary, she knew that, but it was becoming just a tad annoying. Sometimes it was hard for her to remember what it was like to be that young. "You spared my mate's life, and whatever it was you showed him gave him the courage to ask for my eternity," she explained obligingly, and grinned softly as she gave a loving rub to a familiar spot on her neck. Both Moka and Kokoa couldn't help but smile too in understanding. However much they might distrust the other vampiress, it was always occasion to celebrate among their kind. Said vampiress then cocked a silver eyebrow curiously in his direction and continued, "I won't ask you _what_ you showed him, but I have to thank you for it nonetheless. When he asked I knew I couldn't keep my secrets any longer, and though it was the most terrifying thing I've done in centuries, knowing he loved me despite and _because_ of what I am was one of the greatest moments of my life.

"I owe you a debt of gratitude, Aono-san, both for sparing my blood-mate when you had every right to end his life, and for inspiring our newly founded bond. I take my debts seriously, and I owe you not just that one as a wife, but another as a Valentine. My clan dishonored itself by doubting your claim, and worse, fighting it, but while you could have killed two of our members and still demanded more, you spared them instead. As much as I love Vincent, he can make some stupid mistakes sometimes, and shows he still has much to learn. You didn't do yourself any favors by making us think you weren't a vampire, but I know why you did it now. I only have one question: did the adoptions happen before or after they came? I want to know just how deep our debt goes."

By that time Moka had dropped her irritated stance and looked more stunned than anything else, as had her half-sister. _**"After, I'm sad to admit,"**_ she retorted wryly, though no less shocked. _**"It was more of an unwritten rule before that, and something I shouldn't have allowed to go unchecked for so long as it was."**_

Evangeline imperceptibly let out the breath she had been holding. "I hope you don't mind if I'm glad for that. If the boya _and_ my husband couldn't realize your bond was true on your word _AND_ with adoption marks on your friends, I would have had to hurt them. Badly."

The reason was simple. Only the leader or leaders of a clan could adopt members, and Moka was far from being the leader of the clan she was born into. In order for the blood-magic to take hold, her claim would _have_ to be true. She _was_ part of a new clan, and bound by blood to her eternal mate.

As some members of the opposite group chuckled, probably thinking of the threat carried out, the turned witch put on a more formal air for what she was about to do. Pride meant little here; this was about humility, and showing it to those who deserved it. Once more, the vampiress took to a knee. "Nevertheless, that doesn't change what we _do_ owe, and it's with that in mind that I feel no shame in offering you our aid in your endeavors. We came here today to beg forgiveness, and to display our sincerity we want to extend an official truce. We had hoped to give you an alliance, but the Valentine Clan as formed around Isabella Valentine has lost its favor with the Elders for the failure of Alexander's task, and he and his brother's idiocy in coming back even when not endorsed. We are by no means useless, however, and hope to redeem ourselves in your eyes in any way necessary."

Moka goggled. As did they all.

Kokoa especially. "B-B-B-B-B-But _you're_ an Elder too, aren't you! Why would you _allow_ that? Forget that, why did you _hide_ it in the first place! Why are you…why…" She couldn't even complete her sentence, though not for lack of trying.

The other woman grinned in nostalgia. "I only arrived here a scant ninety years ago, with naught but rumors of Youkai developments to go from. It's only gotten hard to travel the world as a Youkai in the last fifty years, with the rise of the internet and facial recognition, and even that can be ignored with enough money. I spent just as much time in the human world as I did in monster circles, though being told of the vampires here didn't take long.

"You have to remember I've secreted most aspects of what I am just to make sure no one could find out anything else if they decided to search. The only reason I told _you_ is because…well, I've never had anyone who could understand where I've come from before. To…to know you weren't always a vampire," she said to Tsukune, almost eagerly, "Who knows, I would probably help you even if I wasn't already in your debt. I spent _decades_ learning to live in a different world than what I was born into, I've created whole new branches of magic while I was trying to hide my song from the chorus of Nature.

"Throughout my life the most important thing I've learned is that it's better to be constantly underestimated than to be considered dangerous. I keep color in my hair to throw people off to my true age and power, and with as many diplomas as I have, acting the part is only too easy. It's a balancing act; be powerful, but not _powerful_; be frightening, smart, and cunning, but not overly so. Keep your cards close to your chest and you'll rarely fail, but you seem to have that part down. In your case though, the overwhelming power might be good, since as a Blood Sage Aono-san wouldn't be questioned for his oddities. You're still young and inexperienced, no matter your pedigree or your knowledge, so you have nothing to lose and everything to gain from us."

She was right and they knew it. This was a rare opportunity, but Moka couldn't stop from thinking one thing. _**"Your origin, was that a peace offering as well? You have no reason to trust us as you do your blood-mate. Why would you risk yourself like that?"**_

Eva just smirked as she pointed to Tsukune, whom was still surrounded by them protectively, and still staring right at her. "My first thought when I heard someone else had been turned was to slap the one who did it into a coma. I resented my sire for over a hundred years before I finally realized what a gift I had been given, but there's a difference between your mate and I, and I see it clearly whenever he looks at you. He _wanted_ this. He has a support structure where I had none, and whatever he was before has no bearing on that." She paused for a moment, then offhandedly mentioned, "And besides, remember that whole 'created new branches of magic' thing? I wasn't joking. I could wipe this conversation from your mind and you'd never know. But again, that's simply another peace offering and no, I haven't done it. I'm putting myself at your mercy, and we're prepared to offer an Oath for your agreement."

The last of the tension left the two siblings with those final words, and they waved down the reignited anxiety in their friends. _**"You're able to give it?"**_ When Evangeline nodded, Moka sighed. _**"You can return your seal, we've seen enough. If you've only just told your blood-mate, I'd guess you haven't told the rest of you clan. If they do come back you wouldn't want to be seen like this, right?"**_

With a mirthful giggle, the older woman gave a sarcastic bow before with a few muttered words, was back to her platinum-blonde appearance. "So you're willing to accept?"

_**"Hold that thought."**_

After all, a decision like this couldn't be made without the agreement of both clan leaders, and just that she would turn her back to the Valentine to talk with Tsukune was evidence to her level of confidence. _**"Well, Tsukune, what do you think?"**_

He sighed and rubbed his forehead to try and quash the ache behind his eyes. "What does this mean, exactly?" he asked, while always keeping the other vampire in his line of sight.

_**"A truce means just what it implies: peace between two clans under an accord. As the slighted party, we're the ones to set the terms of the agreement, and after everything is agreed on, the clans won't act against each other. An alliance goes a bit further, but right now I'm not willing to go that far…unless…?"**_ She looked at him expectantly, and Tsukune felt a surge of pride rush through him, one that by the sparkle that had emerged in her dark crimson irises, she had felt too.

"No," he stated forcefully, "I agree with you; they have a lot more to prove before we go that far. A truce is good enough for now."

Ruby finally managed to make her voice work again. "Moka, we…they…_she_…what we could _do!_"

Though her sentence was stunted by disbelief, Moka understood what she was saying. Yukari's starry-eyed pleading was almost too much for even _her_. _**"Yes, a chance like this won't come again for a very long time, I'd imagine. We have Vincent to thank for this. The love they share has to be genuine, otherwise the Elder would have simply cast him off rather than admit to a debt. We'll see what we can get her to consent to."**_

The two witches visibly restrained themselves from acting like fools, though it was a close thing.

"We'll definitely need a confidentiality clause," Kokoa opined, which received mass nods.

"Might as well hammer out the details with her though," Tsukune said as he fought off a yawn, and sheepishly, the rest of the group shifted back to Evangeline. She was as remarkably composed as ever, but surprisingly the maids were nowhere to be seen. Even Tsukune blinked at that. He had taken his focus from her for a handful of seconds, and just like that she had sent them back from whence they came. A shudder hit him as he thought of all the _other_ things she could have done. They really were extremely fortunate. Moka may be in top form, but he certainly wasn't.

A sigh escaped him. _Kokoa may be on to something. I really am an idiot,_ he thought tiredly.

"So?" the deceptively powerful blonde inquired with one brow to the sky.

_**"We accept, on a few conditions."**_

"Naturally," Eva conceded.

_**"You cannot talk of us or whatever you may learn or have learned about us, unless we've agreed to it. That one is non-negotiable."**_ The Valentine woman merely nodded. They had all expected that much. _**"You will not act against us in a way that causes harm or humiliation for the duration of this truce, and we will do the same."**_ Again, something easily accepted. _**"We…have witches that would benefit from one of your experience, and…as a whole we are still young. We could use the guidance of one who's maneuvered so expertly through the ages. I can only rely on my memories from childhood for so long."**_

And it pained her to admit that, Eva could tell. "So you want to be able to call on me as a…tutor, of sorts?"

She had to give the girl credit; even though she was asking an Elder Vampire to do what was essentially the role of a parent in any fledgling vampire's life, Moka didn't wince or shy away from the question in the slightest.

_**"As you may know, we're not exactly bursting at the seams with reliable sources in either regard,"**_ Moka hissed resentfully, before quieting to an almost subdued tone as she went on,_** "If…if I knew where my mother was, maybe it would be another story, but the fact remains."**_

Evangeline's look softened in sympathy. Yes, she remembered well what she would have done for a mentor the likes of an Elder when she had been clawing together a life for herself. Though their circumstances were different, they were in much the same position. "You realize this wouldn't be a short task, don't you?"

Again, Moka stood unaffected. _**"I know, but we can't **_**not**_** take advantage of this either. Think of it this way: the more you help us, the more we would be inclined to that alliance later."**_

Unexpectedly the other vampire laughed loudly, her grin bright and sardonically amused. "Ha! I think you'd do better than you think in the political arena, young one! We'll set it up; something tells me this will be the most fun I've had in years!"

Before the former Shuzen could continue, Yukari tugged at her hand and drew her attention. The first thing she noticed was how focused and contemplative the small witch was. This wasn't her usual bubbly, perverted self, this was the genius that had earned the title. "What about…more _immediate_ reparations?" she mused thoughtfully, and at that moment Moka could have kissed her.

Like it or not, Eva had heard her too. "I'd assume you mean money, and it's funny you should say that since that was the other main reason for us coming here. As decent as your assumption was, why we're here the day after that problem arose is actually because we were keeping an ear to the ground, so to speak. This seemed like the natural course your father would take, but we couldn't really do anything until we knew for sure. Seeing as two of you have been cut off and you need to pay your tuition, it's a good thing we came when we did, ne?" She was justifiably astonished when the two in question shook their heads.

"We already cleared that up," Kurumu explained proudly, "and we even have a way to get a bit of money during the next couple'a months."

"But that doesn't change what will come after," Mizore added. "We'll have lives to live, university to go to…children to raise. Extra money of any kind would always be a good thing."

Evangeline just blinked in a daze. "How…?"

"Did we acquire the necessary funds?" Rei completed with a vicious smirk that twisted her more draconian features. "'Tis not for you to know. Leave it at that."

The Elder just stared in amazement, then finally chuckled ruefully. "Yes, I suppose it isn't. We agree, of course, but the details are better left until later, when you can talk to the clan heads."

"Well that should be simple, shouldn't it? Since it looks like one's coming over here right now," Ruby stated as she motioned past the ancient witch, where Isabella and Vincent were once more treading the path down to them. Ivy's right arm was in a sling, her shoulder and left forearm were bandaged tightly, and her blouse was still bloody, but otherwise she looked none the worse for wear. It was an act only possible thanks to her inhuman pain tolerance and her refusal to look weak in front of the other vampire clan, but the wounds _were_ healing nicely nonetheless thanks to the fresh infusion of blood.

"Is it safe to say you're discussing the specifics by now?" the blue-eyed vampire asked plainly as she stopped by her daughter-in-law's side. After a quick summary, with the essential modifications for Eva's sake, Ivy just frowned. "Is there nothing more we can do for you? I had hoped we'd gotten across how sorry we are. This seems…paltry compared to the lives of my children."

Kokoa shrugged with a noncommittal _humph_. "That's 'cause there's nothing else we can ask for. We'll need to get into university on our own merit, and that means working hard here, so there's nothing you can do there; I'm sure you own your fair share of businesses, but talking about jobs would be better done later, if we're still _in_ this truce; and frankly, we're not about to ask you to fight with us. That would pit you against the Shuzen Clan, and you're already out of favor with the Elders. This isn't an alliance, this is a truce, a _surrender_. Dig yourself too deep and you'd be no help to us anyway."

Isabella laughed quietly, ignoring the agony lancing up her side where the contractions irritated her hurt shoulder. "And the littlest Shuzen bares her fangs. You've been taught well," she praised warmly.

The redhead itched to tear off the cross around her neck. Isabella Valentine may not have been one of those that had degraded her, either with looks or words, but she wasn't about to let it start. Ivy was getting dangerously close to that territory. "Yes, I have," she growled, "and I think it's been made abundantly clear what good I am to my _sire_," she spat with the same hatred Evangeline displayed when she spoke about the one who turned her. "I'm not a Shuzen, I'm…I'm…" She floundered there, clearly trying to think of a suitable replacement, when Moka rescued her.

_**"Akashiya,"**_ her half-sister declared gently. _**"Kokoa Akashiya."**_

It was only the presence of the Valentines that kept the youngest vampiress in attendance from bursting into tears, and she gave a tremulous smile to her beloved sibling. "…Yeah. Kokoa Akashiya. I like the sound of that," she whispered.

Part of Isabella wept for the children forced to make such decisions so early in life, but another was proud of their resolve and strength in the face of those matters. "I see," the clan head responded softly. "So be it."

Biting into her left palm just enough to make a shallow cut, she outstretched her hand at an angle to keep the dribbling liquid spawning from it somewhat pooled. "On the blood that is our pride, I, Isabella of the Clan Valentine, with the support of Aleister Valentine né Crowley in his absence, do so swear all under our authority will uphold the terms of truce between the clans Valentine and Aono. We recognize our folly and accept our shame. Let us fight no more," she intoned solemnly.

Tsukune remembered the look Moka was giving him from the one in their cave weeks earlier. Without hesitation he bit into his hand while she did hers, and poured the precious substance into her cupped palm so she could finish the ritual, as only she knew how. Her expression was hard as she took hold of Isabella's offered hand and allowed their blood to mingle.

_**"On the blood that is our pride, we, Tsukune of the Clan Aono and Moka Aono née Shuzen, do so swear all under our authority will uphold the terms of truce between the clans Aono and Valentine. We recognize their shame and accept their surrender. Let us fight no more."**_

There was no marking, no visible implication of what had just transpired except a small flash of light, but both Kokoa and Moka smiled when it was done. The Valentines had ceased being a threat. If they tried anything against them, even remotely, without telling them the truce was over first, they risked being cast out by the Vampire community _as a whole_ and stripped of _everything_. Traitor would be too light a word to describe those who broke an Oath, and they were treated as such. The magic would enforce what they had sworn, and it made sure it was known if it was broken. An Oath of Blood was _not_ something taken lightly.

"We _will_ regain our honor; thank you for giving us this chance, Tsukune-san," Vincent said respectfully, and Tsukune's jaw set as he stiffly inclined his head; a curt, if cold acknowledgement before he wobbled unsteadily and the girls around him rushed to his aid. The older man's brows knit in suspicion. "When did you feed last? You have all the symptoms of anemia, and it's being worsened by an obvious lack of sleep. I know you must have been worried out of your mind, but how much sleep have you gotten lately?"

He blinked and looked over at Kurumu questioningly, and the succubus blanched when she figured out what he was asking. "Tsukune, that was the night before even last night! You didn't sleep _at all_ yesterday?" she cried.

"Almost," he defended halfheartedly, though he couldn't meet her eyes. "I just…couldn't stop thinking. I've done it before, but usually then I was out hunting. I didn't want to bother you before you ate."

Mizore huffed in annoyance and spun him around to face her, where she promptly exposed the side of her neck. "Drink. Now," she commanded in her soft tone, and he whispered his thanks into her ear before plunging his fangs into her waiting flesh. She shuddered even though he thought he had lowered the threshold as to not gain the attention of their visitors, but he quickly lost himself in the taste and only pulled himself away with great reluctance. Luckily Kurumu had simply been biding her time, and soon the liquid sugar that he often compared her lifeblood to was flowing down his greedy throat. A gasp of satisfaction tore itself from his lips as he let her go, and Kurumu herself echoed that sentiment, to the curiosity of the Valentines.

Tsukune sighed happily as he felt his body gradually return to the closest he could get to normalcy at the moment, at least without a full night's sleep. The aches deep down inside were being soothed by the arrival of fresh sustenance, and though he still hurt, if anything he felt an even _more_ profound exhaustion wash over him. He hadn't fed when he needed to the day before because of guilt, and during his insomnia he hadn't done the smart thing and gone to Paradise. Maybe it was just his body's way of telling him it was far past empty.

"Thank you," he murmured as he gave the illusionist a squeeze in their embrace.

"Always happy to help," she replied breathily, and they shared a much needed laugh.

Sadly, it was back to business when they broke apart, which they noticed quickly when they saw Isabella looking on with barely-concealed interest.

"That's…efficient," she observed idly.

Evangeline on the other hand, she just started giggling uproariously when her nose caught a very distinct scent, and she gave Moka a decidedly lecherous leer. "Well now, _that_ must come in handy! I'm almost jealous!"

"You should be," came the muttered response in stereo from Yukari, Rei, and startlingly, _Kokoa._ Said female clapped her hands over her mouth like she was diseased when the whole of the Newspaper Club stared at her.

Then, Moka merely chuckled sensuously and said the same.

Tsukune groaned and tried to hide his blush. "As amusing as I am to all of you, it feels like I might be able to finally get to sleep, so I think I'll just go pass out now. Tomorrow I have to confront a school in a uniform they either hate or fear, and I'd like to do that at full strength."

"Do you require any assistance, Tsukki?" Rei asked in concern, and Tsukune would have answered had he not taken that moment to realize she had since returned to her fully human appearance. Which was missing its blouse.

He gave a longsuffering sigh and palmed his face. "Rei…_shirt_."

She glanced down. "Ah." After a second or two of making no effort to hide herself, she looked back to him with and cocked her head to the side. "I believe 'twas lost when this form was altered. You were there, were you not?"

He didn't know whether to laugh or cry, so he settled for helplessly shaking his head and shucking his own shirt to hand to her. "Just put this on, I can't deal with this right now."

Meanwhile, a very strange sound was being forced from the Valentines as they took in the scar-riddled expanse of muscle that had been revealed to them, and Vincent was grimacing as he put a hand over his chest. The phantom pain may be gone, but the memories weren't, and now he knew they weren't just emotional reminders for the younger man, they were physical as well. "You sure went through a lot for them, didn't you?"

"And I would do it all again," Tsukune replied without hesitation. "It was all worth it. At the same time, I won't let anyone try to throw away all the work we've put into this. Which reminds me…"

Striding up to Isabella, his boyish smile with a hint of…_something _underneath caught her unprepared, but that made her even less prepared for him to grab hold of her injured shoulder in a vice-like grip that nearly sent her to her knees, and when her opposite arm moved to dislodge him, he grabbed her bandaged forearm similarly. She cried out as he increased the pressure, digging into wounds that had barely begun to heal, but unable to reach her rosary she was no match for the strength he was putting on display. That was when she knew what that 'something' was beneath his smile. It was the threat of violence.

"I just want you to know, I _don't_ forgive you. I'll _tolerate_ you if for no other reason than you seem honest in your regret, but if you ever come after us again, if you're in any way responsible for the pain, or—God help you—_death_ of any member of my family at any point in the future, your life is forfeit. I will kill you, and that is a promise. I will kill anyone I find in connection to it, and if that so happens to involve every member of your clan, every member of your clan will die. I'm not the oldest vampire around, or the smartest, or probably even the most powerful, but I _will_ make it happen. Do we understand each other?" She nodded as best she could while trying not to vomit from the intense torment rattling her body under his hold, and he smiled wider. "Good."

Just like that the pain vanished, and she was left gasping for air as he walked away, only to gasp again, this time in surprise as she groped at her bandages in shock at the _total_ lack of pain she felt. Other gasps caught her attention, and though her vision was swimming she managed to look ahead, where she could see blood oozing down the young man's skin, and from injuries she was intimately familiar with at that, since they had once been on _her_. He was shivering, and his fists were tightly clenched, but no sound besides his now harsh breathing came from him. Before her eyes she witnessed the gaping wound he had put all the way through her shoulder, now on him, slowly seal shut. In the span of seconds a flicker of white inside told of bone meshing, muscle grew and thickened over it, and finally fresh skin had replaced what had been lost. A quick peek at his left arm showed only blood on what was otherwise unmarked skin, and she gulped. Vampires healed quickly, but there were only a few that healed _that_ quickly. Superficial wounds yes, but bone, muscle, nerve, _and_ flesh? Even Vampires could take a little while to heal _those_, and it often took a blood binge and a lengthy amount of sleep if they wanted it done as fast as possible.

Beyond that, the only question on her mind was, "Why did you…?"

Tsukune managed to get his panting under control, and he was silently glad he had had to give his shirt to Rei so he didn't ruin it with all the blood now running down his bared skin. "I'm not above admitting when I make a mistake," he croaked hoarsely as he tried to wet his suddenly dry throat. "You're on thin ice, but I made an assumption, I hurt you for it, and I was wrong." And now he was even more tired than he had been before, which was good, in a way.

Not surprisingly, the smell of his blood was a siren call to Moka, whom was eyeing his red stained limb with open hunger. That coerced a grin from him and he merely lifted the appendage in front of her, where he shuddered when her tongue brushed a path clean.

_**"As perfect as ever,"**_ she moaned as she licked her lips, which did things to Tsukune's body he really didn't have the energy for, sadly.

"Would you mind if I skipped out for today, Moka? I don't think I'd be able to add anything to this how I am, and you know more about this kind of thing than I do anyway."

She smiled. _**"You're better to everyone well-rested, lover. I think we can survive the day without you. Tomorrow school starts up, so you should get all that you can."**_

"Of course, if you had simply _told_ one of us, we could have helped you. Succubae may not be able to help themselves get to sleep, but I could have easily charmed _you_ into it," Kurumu interjected with a pout, and he laughed guiltily as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"Honestly? I just didn't think of it," he confessed. "Plus, I didn't want to wake you up. Yes, I know Kokoa, I'm stupid. To pay for my stupidity, I'm going to go take _another_ bath and miss out on the last day of summer vacation with my family by sleeping 'till tomorrow morning. How do you think I feel about that?"

Cut off, the redhead blushed and looked away.

_**"Go already, we'll be fine."**_ And when she leaned forward for a goodbye kiss she whispered, _**"I love you."**_

And knowing that made even missing the day seem not that bad. "Love you too," came his gentle reply, one that was repeated to the others before he finally took his leave, heading in the direction of the men's dormitory.

Evangeline just stared after him. "You know, I think our first lesson is going to have to be on the importance of platitudes between immortals," she said at last, and Moka buried her face in her hands, though her amusement was clear by the shaking of her shoulders.

Tsukune didn't know the first thing about the Oaths that had been exchanged or the truth of the arrangements put in place, through no fault of his own, and he had come right out and said what every Vampire meant but none spoke aloud at the end of such a conflict. They were a species that loved war and fighting, and while they contented themselves with fighting each other the odd time for fun nowadays, the chance of real violence breaking out with the right trigger was still very possible. Immortal they may be, but innumerable they were not, thus they tried to keep conflict between themselves as low as possible. That didn't mean getting off scot clean, but it was better than driving themselves to a battle of extinction.

Ruby put it best when she responded with, "I think he would have said that even if he did know of them."

Beside her, Yukari nodded sagely. "We've been through a lot, and Tsukune's taken everything as best as he could; better than most people _ever_ could especially when you think of what he was. It's only been recently he's started believing in himself enough to talk back, and now I wouldn't be surprised if he told the Snow Priestess herself to shove it where the sun don't shine if she tried to pull what she did last year ever again," the pint-sized witch proclaimed emphatically, drawing laughs from the Newspaper Club and stunned silence from the Valentines.

Though the Snow People were in a decline they were fighting hard to get out of, as a whole they had once been a formidable opponent. With a leader that could honestly see the future, they held their ground strong during the warring eras, and earned a fearsome reputation that had fallen to the wayside as time passed. Vampires looked down on every race besides themselves, but the older of them still remembered the truth in the tales and could admit a certain amount of respect for the ferocity and fight hidden in the icy Youkai. Of course, that was then and times change, but the Snow Priestess wasn't one to be trifled with, regardless of era.

It took all of Isabella's considerable experience to keep her face blank. "Not that she would, considering who your friend's with now, hm?"

Moka just smirked. _**"Finally noticed that, did you?"**_

Vincent was only glad his natural aloofness kept him mostly composed on the outside, for inside he was feeling rather ill. When they said family, they _meant_ family, and now he knew without a doubt why his brother's memory had been altered. He suddenly felt very glad for the truce in place. "Did you see…?" he murmured to his wife, and though the lack of her traditional darkly amused expression was proof enough, she gave a tiny nod of her head.

Rei chuckled deeply at the near silent byplay she easily picked up. "To know the enormity of thine errs makes the pursuit of alliance all the sweeter, would you not agree?"

_**"And I'll tell you there's only one thing keeping me from trying for that title too,"**_ Moka purred as her previously passive aura flamed into an existence so heavy the air screamed and the cross laying on the ground rattled furiously.

And as he was walking down the dorm's path, Tsukune paused when his rosary started shaking.

Cold sweat trickled down Ivy's temple as the power coalesced around her, demanding her submission, her deference, and while her throat bobbed for oxygen past the constriction the instinctual fear being brought to the fore made happen, she wondered just how a vampire so young could be so terrifyingly overwhelming. The sheer strength of her aura when inactive made her think it was near full output at all times, but no, that most definitely wasn't the case. Moka just wasn't making any effort to reinforce it.

"I see your notoriety is with good reason," Evangeline deadpanned, seemingly unaffected—at least to Ivy's wide eyes—and like a switch was thrown the suffocating presence disappeared and Moka's smirk had widened.

_**"I'm not afraid to show people their place, you mean. I look forward to our lessons, **_**Sensei.**_**"**_

That was a dismissal if ever they'd heard one, and after setting a date, Eva simply saluted mockingly with a muttered, "Brats," as she and her family bowed one last time and made to leave.

"Oh, and just so you know, what Tsukune said about us goes double for him," Kurumu called out as they walked away. "What he'll do to you if something happens to us is nothing compared to what we'll do to you if something happens to him, got it?" she sang cheerily as she waved, and in some unknowable way that was more intimidating than the darkest glare or deepest growl.

Perhaps it was the identical look of promised death shared by every single one of them at the declaration.

Though unsettling, the Valentines didn't give it much thought. They didn't need to; they had every intention of following through with their promise. They had accomplished what they had set out to do; they were on the track of redemption and that was what mattered. Issa and Akuha were right to wait when they heard of Moka's potential blood-mate, like many vampires would have. In their relative youth and inexperience, Vincent and Alexander hadn't. Vincent had trusted his brother's word on incomplete information, and lacked the skill to recognize what was going on when he went to Akuha. They had walked into a no-win situation where they faced threatening a blood-bond on the one hand, and twice failing the task assigned Alexander on the other, without approval at that. They knew which they would try to right first however, and they were on the right road now.

It was Eva that chose to state the obvious. "A Blood Sage being Tested, two of the Shuzen sisters, a Nightwalker, a Snow Woman of significant strength if I were to make any guesses, two Arch-mages, and a young girl that's like nothing I've ever seen before…" _And reeks of Nature so strongly I don't know _what_ the hell she could be with a transformation like that_.

It was crazy how so many different races could come together into one family, and crazier still how they were all reaching strengths rarely seen even in the Youkai world.

"…We're dealing with a clan like no other," she finished softly.

"But why would Moka-san not want the Test of Judgment when Tsukune-san already has it? If they're not opposed to it, why?" Vincent muttered in confusion.

His wife had no answer for hm. "I'll have to ask when I come back next time. We still have much to discuss."

"Today we overstayed our welcome the second after we arrived," Ivy said neutrally. "They hate us, but they're willing to work with us because it won't cost them anything. They'll have to tell us more if they really want us to help, but for now it's better to quit while we're ahead."

"Of course," Evangeline retorted plainly as her husband hummed thoughtfully.

There were still too many mysteries, too many things that needed to be known before they came back to haunt them with their mere existence.

One of which was the impossible display of force put on by the second youngest of Issa Shuzen.

Their lives just got a whole lot more interesting.

…

Meanwhile, the Newspaper club breathed a simultaneous sigh of relief when the Valentines were gone.

Of all the things to happen, that had been the last one any of them was expecting.

Then Kurumu noticed something.

"…Hey, where's Mizore?"

…

In a bath made for two, cold hands gently washed her lover's body, and when they were done, Tsukune found the rest he wanted at last with his head in the lap of an angel of ice.

As Mizore tenderly stroked his dark chocolate hair, her arctic eyes traveled between his sleeping face and the black vines wrapped around her left hand's ring finger.

Where else would she be?

...

.

**Author's Notes:** You didn't think I'd introduce a character like a vampire named Evangeline without it coming to this, did you? LOL, I admit, I enjoy using the chance new characters give me to pay homage to other vampires portrayed in popular culture. To those of you who think I don't plan out my writing, guess how long _that's_ been in the works. Obviously I don't keep them exact to their canon, and I explain their backgrounds accordingly, but it's still fun to have that element in there.

Anywho, I'm glad not many people commented negatively on what I did with Kurumu, because honestly I forgot to put a note for it in last chapter's A/N. Now I haven't read the manga in forever, but when I was preparing this in the beginning I had to ask myself _why_ a creature from fantasy, a _Succubus_, Succubae as a race, would be dying out even though they're beings of such mythological sexuality. Granted, their mythos isn't necessarily romantic, but you've read how I've changed elements of that for this universe. What I did was the result, and I think it worked out great.

As for the wait, well, I wrote another twenty-five pages on top of what I had already written, so you get a chapter forty bloody pages long because I simply couldn't break it apart. Not that happy with the title, admittedly, but I'm definitely happy with the content.

Next chapter: the dreaded back to school (which I've been putting off long enough, LOL). I've got some things planned, but if you want to PM me with ideas for what club you'd like to see specifically and what to go with them, then I'm always open to hearing them.

Some have thought I've been making everyone seem like insta-leaders, and as it came up in a conversation with Grrdraxin, I hope this chapter gave some insight into that. They aren't insta-leaders, nor am I making them out to be. What I'm doing is giving them a solid grounding for later on in their lives, and in the Youkai world that tends to revolve around strength. Political savvy is worth nothing if they can be pushed around by the nearest mentally-deficient hired thug. They need to be trained in these matters just like they do their bodies, which is where Evangeline and the Valentines come into play. More on that as the story progresses, naturally.

And finally…

Everyone, I can't describe how thankful I am for your continued reviews. Sometimes I look at the review counter and just goggle, and then I think of all the time and effort put into some of the reviews and I just goggle all over again. You guys have made this worth writing, so thank you.

I hope you enjoyed the extra-long chapter!

Sabr.


	27. To Teach A Vampire

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Rosario+Vampire, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story. Simple enough, ne? Just don't copy from this story and we're all good!

...

**Author's Notes:** Well, I could use a lot of excuses here, but I won't. Let's just say life caught up with me and leave it at that. I'm really sorry for the huge, _huge_ delay between chapters, but as I've mentioned I'm a perfectionist, and I hate putting out things I'm not happy with.

I enjoy the minutiae too much to leave things uncultivated, but there will be a few minor time-skips coming up as we move on. I can't stand writers that jump around time-wise, so that's partially to blame, while mostly I just love expanding on character's emotions, so before I know it I've written pages of work and not much time has passed. Oh well, I hope you enjoy it. I sure do. Lots of things this chapter, that's for sure.

On the subject of minutiae, **there will be a lemon scene in this chapter**. It couldn't _not_ happen, especially with how I ended the last chapter. Besides, Mizore hasn't had a go at him by herself yet.

The lack of good lemons for this fandom positively astounds me, but I think I've said that before.

Just a quick thing of note: yes, I am aware that the PSC uniform in canon is blue with white edging. Why did I change it for my story? Well, one, I honestly forgot, because the scanlations I use as my knowledge base look very much like they're wearing black and gold; and two, because where I live blue and white are generally used by Security and Customs agents, while black and gold—or red—is the color of our Police. Those two things together kinda screwed me up, but yes, I've changed the PSC uniform colors for my story. I'd appreciate it if no one mentioned that, LOL. Nevertheless, I think it works, and that's the last I'll say about that.

Please forgive my absence, but hopefully thirty-three pages will make up for it.

More things to come next chapter!

.

**To Teach A Vampire**

**.**

Months ago, when this started, he had been unnerved. Nothing had changed since then.

While his conscious mind didn't remember any of what happened during the wanderings of his subconscious, there remained the slightest suspicion that he was trying to fit together a puzzle missing some rather important pieces. But he knew, somehow he _knew_ that every time he visited the nebulous realm of his dreams, something was different. It was always subtle, hardly noticeable amidst the chaos of whichever scramble of inner turmoil he was forced to wrestle through that particular night, but the longer he spent sifting through the rubble of those scattered impulses, the stronger that feeling became. He had been here before, and this time the change was far more profound than it usually was.

It was the strangest sensation; knowing that he _shouldn't_ know about where he was, and yet when he was there he couldn't help but remember similar times when he had thought the same thing. It wasn't so much that he 'remembered' the specifics of those previous times per se, but that he experienced the oddest impression of things he didn't think he had been through, yet 'knew' at the same time. Most of them didn't make the slightest hint of sense either, nor did they follow any pattern.

There didn't seem to be anything out of their limits; he had been hunter, hunted, and to completely contradict the first two, apathetic towards the whole cycle. He had thrived during day, flourished at night, and welcomed both dusk and dawn equally. He had been on four legs, two legs, _no_ legs, what barely qualified _as_ legs, wings, nearly everything in between, and even what seemed just a bit too unsettlingly reminiscent of tentacles for his liking. He had flown, ran, trotted, swam, walked, crawled, slithered, dug, roared, growled, barked, hissed, and called upon abilities both physical and metaphysical under what had then been simple intuition in that ephemeral realm. There it was like they were a part of him, like he was a part of _them_, instinctual all the same. Then again, it wasn't like he could do anything about it at the moment.

Right then he was host to what had once been familiar guests, but he wasn't so sure of that anymore. He had known them longer than any of the others, so much so that they eclipsed the lesser ones just like the blood-drenched desires of his nature as a Vampire encompassed them all. But now, they were...deeper somehow. It was odd; the disassociation between his conscious and unconscious mind kept him from remembering too much about his dreams when he was awake, and the same paradox kept him from remembering too much about his life when he was dreaming. He knew his name and he knew what he was, but anything finer that might have shed light on his situation was beyond his grasp. Normally he just went with the flow of the experience, be it embracing the cold or shaping the formless, but the lessons he had learned from those experiences, the things they had drilled into the fiber of his being, they were _nothing_ next to what was happening.

He wasn't just embracing the cold, the _cold_ was embracing _him_. What had once been formless, waiting for his touch, was now touching him _back_. The sheer _depth_ behind what he had thought he knew was enough to make him numb in surprise and amazement, but he wasn't given time to let it get to him. In fact, the thought was barely allowed to occur before whatever cognitive abilities he had were ripped away and he was turned into nothing more than a receptacle for those warring factions. Before, it was like he was given a rough outline of urges and left to blindly grope around in the hope that he could learn to correctly traverse the strewn minefield of rights and wrongs those urges responded to, but now, now it was like he had been thrust from the womb right into a world so much larger than what he had known.

It was the only analogy he could think of to do it justice. Blind, deaf, mute; lacking taste, odour, touch, even _breath_, and then suddenly he was gulping in his first lungful of air as every sense exploded into awareness. There was more to the cold than he had ever considered, ever _suspected_. Classifying it as merely Cold did it an injustice, for it encompassed everything that had to do with its element. _It_ was the true Formless, for what he had originally thought to hold that title had shown a facet of itself far deeper than only giving life to imagination.

Emotion.

Passion, love, wanton _lust._ What had been formless was caressing him with the familiarity of a lover, the desperation of a being possessed purely by need, and even as he inevitably responded to those attentions, there was still _more_. It seemed to reach right through him, gently lavishing attention on his very heart itself to bask in the glow it created. It was not merely formless, it existed on an entirely different plain, on a level easy to comprehend but hard to remember, difficult to classify but effortless to experience, larger and more frightening than the strongest physical power.

They were no longer simple impulses, mere _guesswork_ in an unknown reality, they were driving _desires,_ foundational _characteristics!_ He was drowning, being consumed by an enveloping ocean that was forcing the air from his body, driving into his lungs, his cells, forever foraging deeper, and at the same time being burned from the inside out by an emotional firestorm that was targeting a completely different part of him.

It was overwhelming, intoxicating; his body heaved for breath it couldn't gather even as pleasure coursed through it from invisible touches made by the Cold but drenched in the Formless. The already dark surroundings slowly started vanishing as unseen lips began trailing down his neck, as fingers so like the Cold moved to stroke down his chest and map the hardened muscle underneath until they were wrapped firmly around his straining manhood. Even as he shuddered in bliss and made soundless gasps as he was tortuously brought to that peak, the lips were moving along his skin, ever lowering, their destination clear. A very recognizable pressure was building and...

He shot awake with a strangled gasp, crumpling sheets between clenching fingers as he realized the pleasure was still there, and still growing. There was no chance for him to do anything when he felt those cool lips close over his pulsing erection, he was so close to the edge he could only arch his back and spasm as he came with a choked cry. The woman clearly didn't mind this if her satisfied hum was anything to go by, and as his eyes struggled into focus and he managed to convince his lungs they weren't filled with water, he saw a very naked Mizore Shirayuki grinning not unlike her duet partner as she slid up his body, though it was perfectly clear to him where one of her hands remained.

"Good morning, Tsukune," she greeted softly, her bright blue eyes twinkling.

"Gah..." was her lover's less-than-eloquent response, but her smile only deepened. He was more than aware of the slow, deliberate strokes she was administering to his throbbing sex, and even as his parched throat ached to break its lengthy fast, his nostrils were filled with the sharp, pungent aroma of the Snow Woman's desire. The fire in his blood roared to life at the ready offering being presented to him, and she moaned appreciatively when he reached over to pull her into a devouring kiss. His dreams forgotten, the worries of the day could wait for a little while; he had a wonderful woman that needed his attention, one whom had just awoken him in the most wonderful of ways.

As she wrestled her tongue into his mouth he fought back with vigor, and fell back with a harsh groan when she reminded him where her hand was with a quick squeeze. She used the opportunity to the fullest, and threw a leg over his waist as she moved to straddle him fully, effectively trapping him beneath her. He felt no reason to try and change that as she leaned down to resume their oral entanglement, and both moaned when she started grinding into him, rubbing his length into the cleft of her dripping womanhood.

"God...Mizore..."

The ice maiden decided right then that there was no better way to start the day.

"What do you want, Tsukune?" she whispered, her voice naught but a throaty purr as her kisses began to stray down his chin to nip at his neck. It was killing her to be so close to him and have to hold herself back, and though she knew it would only take a small movement on either of their parts to be complete, this was what _she_ wanted. Drifting seductively upright, feminine fingers guided their masculine counterparts to her pert breasts, and as he heeded the wordless appeal she hummed in approval. With her full weight suspended on him, she rolled her pelvis lazily, taunting both him and herself with the static crackle of pleasure that crawled through them every time her sensitive slit traced the imposing girth of his arousal. "Can you feel me? Feel how wet you've made me, Tsukune. I'm yours, all you have to do is tell me what you want."

He hissed in a decidedly animalistic manner and threw his head back harder into his pillow as she continued her glorious torture. Mizore was nothing if not patient, and he knew she could keep them on the edge for a good long time if she ever felt so inclined. He had yet to find out just how long that could be—and part of him never wanted to—but he would be the first to admit that the explosion that came at the end was absolutely _rapturous_. For a woman that had once only looked and never touched, she had been taking great delight in closing that gap in her education. Ever since he was turned what had been common habits of hers had been changing, but it had never been made more clear to him than after they had taken that final step that it wasn't so much that they were changing, but that she was opening herself up more.

She was a shy person, but behind her inhibitions there was a woman that wanted to be loved in every possible way. She wasn't unaware of the figure she held, nor was she ignorant in how to use it. That calm confidence was shown in whatever she wore, be it a cheerleading uniform, bikini, or even a kimono adjusted to her own styling. No, for her it had never been about external beauty, it had always been about being accepted for who she was, quirks and all. In her friends, her new family, she had found that. Around them she didn't need to be afraid of rejection, even if they didn't always agree with each other. Around them she could be herself, and more than that, explore who she wanted to be.

But for the quiet, normally soft-spoken Snow Woman, the bedroom was the one place she could let herself go _completely_. There they were all on equal footing, discovering the new and beautiful world of their sexuality. She touched and was touched, kissed and was kissed; it was intimacy on a level once attainable only in her dreams, and she loved every single awkward, tentative, sometimes even painful second of it. It was those moments that led to the _incredible_. Even if she didn't necessarily know what she wanted or how to do it like Kurumu always seemed to, she didn't fear voicing it, and had quickly learned that to be one of her greatest weapons against Tsukune's restraint.

She wanted him, craved him, but in some ways Tsukune was even more shy than she was. If she could peel that away with a few well-worded taunts, she would do it, and gladly. Just remembering the look that appeared in his eyes when she dipped into her expanding repertoire of vulgarity made her shiver inside. For that matter, even Kurumu had been surprised by some of the words she had uttered during their memorable ménage à trois, but the succubus hadn't discouraged it either. The opposite, actually. Now she had never been quite as silent as their alumna friend Sun, for example, but she found being allowed to whisper, groan, even scream what she had once only dared write down in her most private diary extremely invigorating, not to mention arousing. Tsukune obviously thought the same, though it never failed to make him blush.

She considered turnabout not only fair play, but simply natural, and had made it a point to not let them continue before he told her what _he_ wanted. His hands were sliding down her taut skin, trembling over the flesh of her firm butt as if fighting to keep from digging into it and holding her in place so he could sate the burning desire she was denying him. She knew he wouldn't though, not without her permission. If things went as planned though...

Caramel eyes almost black with need pleaded with her, but she just repeated her prior words.

He nearly whimpered. "Mizore...dammit..."

Just a bit more. She could tell he was close. As much for her as it was for him, she grabbed his wrists and shoved his hands onto her ass herself, then she ground down, _hard_.

He couldn't describe what overtook his mind. The situation wasn't anything that hadn't happened before, though they had only managed the occasional night together since he had returned, and honestly he genuinely enjoyed seeing Mizore so unburdened and playful, but from within the confines of his currently lust-ridden consciousness, something he hadn't known had been waiting snapped into place.

Mizore's back arched impossibly far as she motioned to scream but could only gasp, breathless and alight in sensation, as suddenly her lover was embedded fully inside her. She was plenty ready for him, but that didn't mean she wasn't still tight, nor was he inconsiderable in size. The slight sting of pain unusually made the pleasure coursing through her all the sweeter, but her breath was not so quickly recovered, and he used that to flip their positions, shifting deeper into her as his weight was added and—perhaps unintentionally—pinched her aching clit amidst their sandwiched bodies.

The snow heiress tried again to scream, and this time succeeded. "Oh my _god!_"

Even Tsukune Aono could allow himself a small surge of masculine pride at that exclamation, and watching her writhe under him only emphasized the exquisite pleasure playing havoc with his nervous system. It was indescribable. The instincts of a Vampire knew well the desires of the body, but now...now he really _knew._ The desperation, the urge, the insatiable _need_ she had kindled in him was still there, but all he saw was her, all he _felt_ was her. Where before there had been the wall that separated soul from soul between them, instead there was only a veil. Far from transparent, as sturdy as any wall, but what it revealed...it was...it was...hypnotizing.

She was a corona of snow-white power, a nova of lust and love shining brighter than any sun, and he felt like he could spend eternity just basking in that glow. This was beyond reading auras, different from sensing Youki; this was a connection. They were _connected_, physically, intimately, intrinsically, and it was _familiar_. He had felt something like this before, only then he had been on the receiving end. _This_ was both so much more, and yet not enough. It could get better, he _knew_ it, he _needed_ it.

Clear blue eyes could only stare into their chocolate counterparts, so overcome at the intensity in his gaze they hardly noticed the changed shape of his ears or the leathery wings that had appeared on his back. As her lungs fought for oxygen and her ankles locked over the small of his back however, she just didn't care. He had finally taken the initiative. Like he was reading her thoughts, he dug into her using solely his hips, teasing her little bundle of nerves mercilessly, and she hissed, "Oh _yes!_"

A sensuous chuckle rumbled from his chest as he reveled in the tremors of her inner walls. "What do I want?" he asked lowly as he pressed his chest to hers, bracing one elbow under her armpit as his other hand began wandering down her side, back down to the firm swell of her ass. The tempo he started was agonizing to the Snow Woman, just small, toe-curling motions that did nothing but force him deeper momentarily before retreating. "That's simple, I want to make you feel as good as you make me. I want you every_where_, in every _way_. God, I want you when we spar, in the club room, on your desk, _anywhere_ as long as you want it."

It took a second for that to sink in, but when it did, the smile that blossomed on her lips was positively beatific. Never had he answered her in so much detail. It almost seemed like a confession to himself as much as it was to her, and that was what she _really_ wanted. But it wasn't enough. She had to keep pushing.

"And why don't you take me?" she whispered hotly, directly into his ear, and with their position she could literally feel the shudder go through him. It was the question she wasn't alone in wanting the answer to; even Moka had expressed her confusion on the point during their numerous girls' nights over his month-long absence.

"Aren't I?" was his cheeky reply, but before he could do another of those deliciously deep thrusts, she used the fact that her legs were already wrapped around his waist to lock him in place.

"I mean it, Tsukune."

And she did, he knew that with every sense that was attuned to her. More than that, she had him exactly where she wanted him, and it wasn't like he could just avoid the subject _here_. He relaxed slightly, allowing more of his weight onto her as he rested his head against her shoulder. Did he want to have this conversation? Not in the least. Could he do anything about it? He could, but those choices would universally result in an end he wasn't willing to consider. Let it not be said that Mizore Shirayuki didn't know how to pick her battles. Or her battlefields.

Quietly, the question came. "Now?"

She smiled as she planted gentle kisses along his neck, and jerked her legs just enough to move his length in her and make her moan. "What better time is there? I want to know, Tsukune. Didn't I tell you? _Tell me what you want_."

His response wasn't unexpected, and it held all the uncertainty of the regular teen he once was. "I just...what if...I mean...you're gorgeous, you all are, and _god_, I could spend all _day_ in bed with you if I could..." She chuckled and kissed his collarbone in unspoken agreement, but she still had to strain her ears to hear what finally passed through his pride. "...Saying it out loud sounds...especially _here_ but...but what if...well...you don't...you-know?"

There it was.

With strength that belied her small frame, she easily rolled them over so she was back on top, grinning all the while. At the first sign of discomfort he had managed to brace himself enough that his wings weren't completely pinned, but it put him in her mercy even more now that his arms were occupied. "And here we thought we were teaching you so well. Tsukune, I'm not saying it won't happen, but if you don't try you'll never know, will you? Be spontaneous, do something crazy; you've never said no to me, do you think we'd be so quick to say no to you? You are _mine_," she groaned with a sway of her pelvis that had him hiss out a sharp breath, "You are _all_ of ours, and we're yours as well. _Take_ that. You know what I want? I've told you. I want you, Tsukune. Did you think that applied to just that time, or just now? No, I want _you_. _I_ want to do it when we spar, _I_ want to do it in the club room, _I_ want to do it on my desk, the teacher's desk, the _headmaster's_ desk; _I_—_want_—_you_, and you _know_ I'm not the only one."

He hadn't thought he could get any harder, but he was proven wrong. Silently, he cursed himself for thinking he was being clever by started off so slow when Mizore was a master of the art, and not so silently cursed aloud when she raised herself up, tortuously dragging his erection out of her velvety sheath before slamming it back in.

"Language, Tsukune," she teased playfully, and he had enough of his faculties left to manage an incredulous glare at her.

"You're one to—_gah!_" What she knew he would say was interrupted by a skillful twist of her hips, and when she leaned down to tease his chest with her teeth his breath was stolen from him in a ragged cry that made her insides curl with delight.

"You want me too, don't you?" she pouted mischievously.

His teeth clenched. "God, yes!"

Her ascent started again. "You want to pound my little pussy 'til I can't walk straight?"

"Yes!" he moaned, and she dropped, tearing another harsh moan from his throat.

She grabbed at his tail, and when she licked the end he nearly lost it. "You want to bend me over my desk and do my ass so hard I can't sit for days?"

He threw his head back and growled, "_Yes!_"

Leaning down, she bit hard enough into his neck to leave an angry mark of red in his skin, and just before their lips met, she murmured, "Then _do it._"

And through their fledgling connection, that indescribable tie that had somehow weakened the bonds of self between them, Tsukune felt something he never would have expected. Behind the snowstorm of power, beneath the light that seemed to come from her soul itself, there flickered remnants of... frustration...apprehension..._fear_. It struck him all at once that _they_ were just as afraid as _he_ was, and that him not coming to any of them had been just as bad as them not coming to him. He could hardly count the times they had swallowed their fear and given form to their desires, and so too did they want him to do the same. He had spent a month growing into a predator that could be respected in the wilds, conquered the fear of himself and his life as a Vampire, but not the much simpler, and yet so much more terrifying fear every human and monster had: that of rejection.

Mizore had chosen the one time that couldn't even be considered to teach that lesson, when they were joined, bound in both love and body, completely accepting of one another, and he found a wide smile stretching on his lips as he accepted her kiss. Supported as he was on his elbows to keep his wings from being crumpled under him, his options were limited, but he dug his heels into his futon and jerked his hips up, pressing himself even deeper inside her and gaining a high-pitched grunt of pleasure from his lover in the process. She responded in kind, but slower, tantalizingly drawing him only inches out before grinding herself back down, and he could see the curiosity in her beautiful blue eyes half-hidden beneath long violet lashes. If only she could see what he was seeing, feel what he was feeling...

Since she couldn't, he would have to show her.

Luckily for him, they were in the perfect situation for him to do that.

Though something deep inside was gratified immensely whenever he was able to watch her ride him, use him for her own pleasure, sadly that went against what he wanted to accomplish this particular time. His arms strained as he moved to twist them over and keep her from falling too quickly at the same time, and though she whined when she felt him slide out of her, his fingers soon kept her from feeling the loss. For him it was probably just as jarring, for what little there was of that amazing connection all but disappeared. Even with that, it _still_ felt like his mind was operating on a different level, that he could _see_ differently than he had before, and as he captured her resulting moan in a deep kiss he _felt_ things, suggestions seemingly implanted straight into brain that he found himself investigating inquisitively, and was quite pleased—and shocked—at the reactions.

No more so than Mizore herself, whom was all but outright squirming under his assault. His fingers could reach so much farther than hers, and he was using two to plunder her body, search for new areas he had yet to discover that would make her scream and curse, and all the while his thumb traced lazy circles around her clit that made her legs tremble uncontrollably. She wanted to protest, wanted him back inside her totally, but she just couldn't bring herself to utter so much as a word of anything but praise as her lover laid beside her and licked at her oh so _annoyingly_ sensitive nipples, as his fingers danced within her and his tail flicked teasingly at the underside of her breasts. Her chest was tight with pleasure, hardly able to fit any air through the gaps in her acclamations, and she knew she wouldn't be able to last as long as she wanted to. What made it even more unbearable was the scorching heat of his hard length pulsing with impatience against her hip, thick with blood and slick with remnants of her, and yet somehow _he_ was able to ignore it better than _she_ could.

"Tsukune..._Tsukune...Tsukune...!_"

Her back arched when he replaced his tongue with his teeth against her hardened pink nubs, and her eyes screwed tight even as she finally gained a hold of what she wanted. Her lover hissed in no small amount of bliss when her hand began running hard strokes up and down his neglected arousal, but to her profound disappointment it had the opposite effect of what she was going for, and she swore when he leaned out of her grip and off of her entirely.

"Language, Mizore," he chuckled as he crawled down her body, and blue eyes narrowed at him.

"Tsukune, I want that _fuc_—!" she cut herself off with a yelp when he spread her legs and unceremoniously lifted her hips so she was resting solely on her shoulders, which left her looking up at her own reddened slit as he leaned between her airborne legs. Her face flamed at the embarrassing position, but despite that she was more turned on then ever. Tsukune was not only _showing_ her what he wanted, he was _taking_ it. Of course, it probably had more to do with who she was that what he was doing was affecting her so much, but she was sure the others would enjoy it just as much. She knew for a fact Moka kept a secret stash of 'bodice-rippers' hidden away from her well-stocked bookshelf. Then he was attacking the folds of her womanhood with his tongue, and all thought was redirected to processing the wonders rushing through her body.

Watching him was nearly as arousing as what he was doing to her; seeing his tightly muscled arms wrapped around her waist to keep her lower half upright as kneeled in front of her, licking and nibbling at her weeping sex; gazing into eyes the color of burnished copper while he tasted a uniqueness purely her own; it sent quivers through her. Her fingers clawed at his thighs as her clitoris became the focus of his efforts, but his grip on her made it impossible for her to push herself closer to his wandering mouth. She was so _close_.

"Oooh god, don't you stop, don't you dare stop, you hear me?'! Shit, shit shit shit shit _shit!_"

Which was when she was promptly reminded he wasn't restricted to just two hands anymore, and any profanity that may have wanted to come forth was silenced into a shriek of pleasure as his tail pushed into her.

"Oh _yes!_ Deeper, push it deeper, Tsukune!"

Mizore's eyes rolled back in her head when he did just that, his focus never wavering from her engorged pearl. There was no chance of her holding back. She came, reduced to a mass of trembling limbs as her orgasm ripped through her like a freight train, bringing blessed relief to every pore it passed through before new motions of the prehensile appendage inside her set off another wave...and another...and another. When she finally came down from the haze of climaxes she realized she was once again laying fully on the futon, and noticed with approval that her lover was busying himself kissing her stomach on the way up her body. She couldn't wait for there to be a slight swell he would be kissing there too.

"Mhmmm, you sure know how to make a girl feel loved," she rasped as she stretched beneath him, trying to will some strength back into her tingling extremities. His quiet laughter into her skin made her giggle, and when his face came before her at last she sluggishly wound a hand into his hair, greeting his smile with one practically glowing with satisfaction as she tugged him down to her lips. She had never been more glad to wake up so early in the morning. She wanted to enjoy this to the fullest before she had to face their entire school.

"Just returning the favor, Mizore," Tsukune replied when she let him go, and she quickly brought him back down for an encore.

It wasn't enough.

He choked on a gasp when her small hand grabbed his manhood none too gently and set it at her entrance. She would _not_ be denied any longer.

"No more, Tsukune. I want that cock in me _now._"

He shivered, both from the order and the tone it was spoken in. Mizore was usually so cautious with her inflection and actions, though less so around members of their group, but when they were making love... He couldn't have said no if he wanted to, and that was the farthest thing from his mind.

The ice maiden moaned openly when he did as she commanded, and her vampire did the same as he sunk into her completely. He filled her almost to the point of pain, small as she was, but there was no feeling comparable to taking every inch inside her and having his hips rest against hers. She didn't bother restraining a deep hum of gratitude when he gave them a magnificent moment to savor the feeling, and then he was moving, long, deep thrusts that almost voided her of him entirely before she was full to the brim once more. The harsh slaps of their bodies meeting were no match for her gleeful cries as she took everything he gave her with joyful abandon, and did her best to brace herself appropriately when he hooked an arm under one of her legs and leaned over her, supporting himself with one hand as he started in on a new angle, one previously unexplored.

Even her growing collection of crudity failed her. A breathy whimper was all that would come off her strangely heavy tongue as she lolled her head back in a daze, and every time he hit that spot her toes would quaver and her fingers would clench as a new sound was coerced from her throat. He was so deep, hitting her just right so hard it was making her dizzy with pleasure; she swore she could even feel her _womb_ trembling in anticipation. She felt every vein as he slid out of her tightening womanhood, and even as it fought to keep him inside he was pushing back in, electrifying every nerve on the path back to that spot she couldn't describe but desperately desired. It was as if her whole body was preparing to explode, and even if it was she had never wanted to die so badly.

Tsukune was so absorbed in her—her feeling, her energy, her spirit, her _body_—it was all he could do to remember who _he_ was. The veil between them, the connection that had been hazy at best before, had never been so clear in his mind's eye, but the sweat-slicked beauty grinding herself into him demanded his full attention. White-hot bliss assaulted his senses from all directions as he strove to delve deeper, to satisfy the burning _need_ he somehow knew wasn't his own, and the more he did the more she squeezed. It was agony in the most beautiful sense of the word.

"Tsukune—_uh_—so full...more..._more!_ I'm almost...!"

Her hands wound under his arms, reaching up behind his back to his shoulders so she could pull him closer to her and feel his heated cold as she prepared to lose herself once more, but he had a different idea. She muffled a shout into his neck when he jerked down, curling himself over her as he shuffled his freed arm into position beneath her other leg, and with one solid flap of his wings had brought himself to his feet. Items rattled around his room from the displaced air, but she didn't hear any of that as blood pounded in her ears and her vision swam.

"Oh...oh..._oh!"_

He was standing up, holding her only under her knees while her grip on him kept her supported. Somehow, it felt like he had gotten _deeper_. She couldn't bring herself to speak, could hardly _move_ as his every step jostled her insides, and her overwhelmed brain only discovered there was a destination in mind when she felt the cool plaster of his dorm room wall press against her back. The deep, even tempo of before was discarded in the new position; it was hard, it was fast, and it was everything she could do to keep from passing out. When she felt his tail prod at her ass, her eyes had just enough time to widen before the spaded tip had pushed beyond the ring of muscle and was thrusting in dissonant harmony with him, spearing her from both sides.

"_Oh my GOD!_"

She really, really wanted to be upset at Kurumu for awakening her to the pleasures she could feel from such an unusual place, but that had been a lost cause ever since she had first tasted the fruits of that forbidden orifice. Besides which, she knew she had brought it on herself by doing it to the succubus in the first place, and she would never regret it. The explosion was building, gaining strength at an alarming rate with her so absolutely filled by her lover. She didn't know how long she was able to take the treatment, certainly not near as long as she would have liked, but the combination of his manhood pushing the limits of her stretched sheath and his tail doing the same from behind could only be endured so much. Every thrust felt twice as jarring with gravity aiding their force, and her nails clawed for purchase in his flesh as she felt the end near.

"Tsukune...I'm..._cumming!"_

Two things happened as the blinding intensity of her orgasm overtook her.

For Tsukune, the veil which had allowed him to see the immaterial hidden under the physical suddenly vanished entirely, plunging him into the heart of the snow-white supernova burning with everything he had come to love about Mizore Shirayuki.

For Mizore, nothing could describe what she felt as that occurred, and she bit into his shoulder to mute the pitched shriek that was torn from her as it did. Hard enough to draw blood.

His blood.

_Vampire_ blood.

The tattoo of twisted vines on her ring finger glowed like fire as she shook in renewed climax, harder than ever before, and Tsukune had no choice but to tumble over the edge with her as she milked him for all he was worth. Even as he filled her with the proof of his love, groaned out loud as he finally found release, another part of him was still basking in the ethereal blizzard of a power he knew had to be his lover's. It was that part of him that felt red tinge an otherwise colorless purity, bolster a blizzard already raging strong into a storm of epic proportions. And as he tasted the power growing so great it was leaking over their tie, it was that part of him that knew instinctively what had taken place...and what it was he was actually doing.

Frantically, he grabbed that connection, forced it as wide as it could go, then pulled as much of that cold into himself as it needed to return to normal.

It felt like his very _soul_ shivered. A spasm rippled through him, almost painful as his body unexpectedly ached to match itself to the power rushing into it, and he nearly collapsed when for the second time that day, something in his brain cracked into awareness with a sound not unlike shattering glass. He was moving before he even knew what it was he wanted to do, and a throaty howl came from the woman in his hold as his fangs dug deep into her neck to prolong her stay in paradise. Not only was he drinking her blood, he was literally _pulling_ from the fount of her essence itself in the deepest possible way. A wave of nostalgia washed over him, like memories from forgotten fantasies, and with it a sense of understanding so unfathomable it could only be described as instinctual settled over him.

So as they shared that moment—a climax between lovers, a bond between souls, an experience of shared blood—Tsukune did what Kurumu had yet to try. While he stood in the center of a snowstorm that would never hurt him, while his physical self licked her neck clean and began a tender kiss she returned with her whole heart, he reached inside where that connection linked to him and he _pushed_.

She _could_ see what he was seeing. She _could_ feel what he was feeling. Like he had first thought, it all lay in his ability to show them to her. Never in his wildest dreams would he have suspected he might be able to do that so...directly.

In that shared moment...in that singular, small set of heartbeats as orgasm turned to afterglow...the two communed in a way greater than any mere expression of words.

All too soon Tsukune felt the veil of individuality replace itself, and a soft sigh escaped him as he leant his forehead against the wall by his lover's head. In finding out how he had even become aware of such a thing, he knew he had once again gone far beyond what either of his trainers had suspected a Blood Sage was capable of. He had seen his ice maiden's inner strength for all that it was, mingled with the wellspring of her spirit and taken from its stores. He had been an Incubus in everything but name. With the addition of her Youki in so pure a form, however, holding the transformation had become a conscious decision rather than the near thoughtless transition it usually was.

Though reluctant to part with the indescribable sight of her through their connection he would always reverently hold in his memories, the part of his blood that sang to her nature wanted to be with her as she deserved, as one being of living winter to another. He couldn't deny that desire wasn't also his own. A soft whimper came from Mizore when his tail left her to disappear with the rest of his borrowed features, but he didn't stay normal for long. When their eyes finally met, it was just in time for her to see the last of his hair be replaced by crystal, and just in time for him to see the last remnant of ruby drain from her sapphire irises.

Terror like nothing he had ever known gripped him, but only for an instant. It was assuaged by the watery gaze she held on him, and the tracks of frozen tears glimmering on her cheeks as she lifted an inhuman hand to stroke his cheek. He hadn't even noticed that she had taken on her true appearance, or when she had done so. Her unsteady legs barely held her weight when he set her down to hold her close, but she didn't falter, nor did she question why his arousal had left him so abruptly. She knew the look he wore; something had startled him, frightened him, and badly. While some part of her knew she should be concerned about that, she couldn't dredge up the ability to dwell on it. She had bigger things to deal with.

"You do love me," she whispered, voice rough from overuse and thick with emotion as more tears thickened the stained trails down her face.

She had known it; he had told it to her time and again, showed her as often as he could, but nothing, _nothing_, could have prepared her to _feel_ it with everything that she had been, was, and ever would be.

"You do want me."

More than any physiological response or heated look ever could, she had felt deep in the core of her soul how much she meant to him, how every new quirk he discovered only made him crave her more. He didn't just want her physically, he wanted _her. _How he wanted her happiness—to give her children just as much as she wanted to have his children. How he wanted her sadness—to know her fears just so he could fight them away with her. How he wanted her mind...her body..._her._ How _desperately_ he wanted her to know all that.

A soft smile stretched over his lips as she tried to describe what she had experienced and only ended up moving her mouth.

"Of course I love you," he responded gently. Showing her how much had been easy after he had felt the depth of her own for him, and for their family. Feeling, _knowing_ that Moka loved him through their blood-bond was humbling enough, being able to have that with Mizore—and eventually the rest of his family, now that he knew of the possibility—was nothing short of a divine blessing, and one he would thank the heavens for until his dying day. He kissed her tenderly, taking in her sob as he did while he reached up with a hand all but identical to hers to wind their fingers together by his cheek. The kiss strayed off course as he moved her hand over his scarred chest to rest on his hip, then rose to carefully brushed the swell of her breast as his lips roamed down to her neck. "And I said it before didn't I? I could never get enough of you."

She issued a whine of discontent when his progress halted, but stilled when she felt him sigh into her collarbone. If there was one thing she knew, it was Tsukune's body language, and he was clearly trying to work up his nerve. While she tried to think of everything that might be bothering him, what fear he might be wrestling with, that thought almost instantaneously brought to mind the fear she had seen in his eyes just a few minutes prior. Now that she had the time to consider it in a more lucid state, it hadn't been a fear _of_ something, it had been a fear _for_ something. What could have possibly happened that she wouldn't have been aware of? It wasn't like she hadn't been with him the whole time. Biblically, even. Whatever it was, she was confident he would talk about it given the proper _encouragement_.

Her lover let loose the breath he hadn't known he was holding when her felt her arms wrap around him, and soon it was _her_ lips trailing along _his_ neck, mutely inquiring as to what was wrong as the palms of her icy claws rubbed soothing designs of no particular origin on his back. It was almost hard to believe how easily she understood him even when he didn't know what to say, but then again, Mizore could tell whole stories without ever saying a word. It wasn't like the ones he needed were hard to say either, it was just what they represented was so hard to deal with. Nonetheless, they needed to be said.

"...You bit me."

Of all the things she had been expecting, that hadn't even been on her radar. Still, she felt her already cold blood go that much colder. Thinking back, all she remembered was the bliss of climax, an alien yet familiar presence, and then...then...shaking, boiling over in pleasure and power and oh god the _heat_ so cold it _burned _that made her come so hard she almost fainted.

Now that she looked, she could see the dried blood on his shoulder, from a wound long-since healed. No wonder he had been frightened; she couldn't blame him. Hell, _she_ was frightened. Ingesting vampire blood was _not_ something done lightly, and it certainly wasn't without its consequences. That begged the question though, why was she still alright?

"How...?"

He made the vocal equivalent of a shrug as he straightened to return her hug and just take comfort in her company. That may have been the intention, but she couldn't help but smile internally when she felt the renewed throb of his manhood against her stomach. She could definitely attest to fears being surprisingly easy to overcome when both people involved happened to be naked, and her insides fluttered at the thought of him within her again.

As she sought out his alarm clock to see if they had enough time for another round before school, she quickly realized there _had_ been consequences.

Ironically enough, she noticed this just as Tsukune was saying, "I think I accidentally siphoned off the surge of Youki that would have hurt you when you did, even with the little that you got, and that saved you from most of the effects. We got _very_ lucky."

She chuckled weakly, though her eyes were filled with mirth. "Maybe not as lucky as you think."

He followed the motions she was making with her head to look behind him, and soon enough he was fighting off laughter with her.

The rest of the room was covered in a good three inches of snow.

A wave of her hand and the white powder was turned into humidity, and another wave, aimed at his washroom this time, was followed by the sound of water settling into place, leaving his dorm and all of its contents as dry as it ever was.

Her lover just smiled and shook his head. "You amaze me, you know that?"

"You're not so bad yourself," she replied with an impish smirk as she playfully pushed him away from her. "Now then, we've got a tub waiting for us and enough time to make sure we can get _thoroughly_ clean. Let's not waste it, hmm?"

An ever-so-familiar grin split his face. "Wouldn't want the water to get warm, now would we?" he asked rhetorically as he easily hoisted her back into him, earning a giggle from the woman as she clenched her legs around his waist obligingly and crossed her long fingers together behind his neck.

"Don't worry, I'll make sure you won't even miss the heat," she promised, tone heavy with implications that made his cock throb into the crest of her ass. "One day I'll have you, just like this, surrounded by the shirayuki's under the snowy sky. The only warmth I'll need is yours, the only heat on your mind will be mine. We'll take each other again and again in every way we can think of until the mountains remember the storm we make. Can you imagine that?"

The insistent pulse she could feel beneath her confirmed that he could, and her smirk stayed in place as she reached down to run her icy digits up the sensitive underside of his arousal, pressing him into the gap of her smooth rear.

"Doesn't sound so bad, does it?"

He shook his head in the negative while soft clouds formed from his tightly controlled breaths. "I don't think I'll ever get used to you talking like that, but god it's hot."

Her smirk widened.

"See?"

...

After a bath where she had been scrubbed clean in ways that still made her tingle gloriously, Mizore Shirayuki could honestly say she was ready to face anything the day threw at them. Considering today was the day they would find out just how ready the rest of the Third Years were for a Safety Commission to be reinstated, that was saying something.

She had to admit, joining Tsukune for his little lie-in had been a great way to end their vacation. She might not have been as tired as him, but she had been given unrestricted access to his room in the meantime, and it was nice to be able to look around. He didn't have much in the way of worldly possessions, but every trinket he had been given over the years was proudly displayed where all could see. Most of those had been knocked out of place by the ill-considered use of his wings that morning, but somehow she didn't think he'd be too upset.

As it was, she was enjoying watching him dress as he belted his black slacks into place. It was amazing how deceptively slimming black was. Tsukune was by no means skinny anymore, but with the dark color covering him she would hardly suspect how muscular he really was unless he flexed. The pants hugged him in all the right ways though, and she made no effort to hide her uninhibited leer as she strolled up behind him. His hair was in fluffy disarray from their bath and longer than he had ever let it grow before, but something about him just glowed with charisma she knew he had but rarely showed. It was impossible to put her finger on, but it was almost like something had taken his base features, already impressive to begin with, and slowly started to...refine them.

Bronzed skin seemed softer yet firmer at the same time; dark hair was that much darker; the flow of his body, trained from awkward schoolboy to deadly predator, had shifted sensuously, just enough to accentuate the lethal grace he carried and combine it with the carnal knowledge he had been gaining in the bedroom. To be perfectly honest, he radiated _sex_.

It was right then she figured out Kurumu really _had_ been getting more beautiful, and it hadn't been a figment of her imagination.

Still clad in only her underwear, they struck quite a sight in the mirror as she ran her pale arms down his chest. "How does it feel?" she asked.

He sighed as he wrapped a hand in hers. "How does it feel to be wearing the same uniform as a guy who nearly killed me? Honestly, I'm feeling a bit sick to my stomach."

She nodded sympathetically and held him tighter. "We said we'll change the Commission, let's start by changing the uniform a little."

His confusion was easy to see, but that was likely because all he mostly wore was the school uniform, and he had never dared alter it before. This case was the exception, and he gave no resistance when she unzipped the light jacket that would have normally served as the underlay for the blazer and pulled it from his shoulders. After a quick search through his closet, she held out the gold button-up she and Kurumu had all but demanded he buy on their trip to the Arcade months ago for him to put on, and gave an overly-dramatic sigh when he did it up normally. It would work for what she needed at the moment, so she allowed it, then shrugged back on the inner jacket over top. As she had hoped, it had just the right amount of movement available for it, and when she had loosened the cuffs it was a simple matter to push up the sleeves, which she then repeated with his shirt, though those sleeves she rolled up over the jacket's. Undoing just enough buttons on his shirt to tease at the tanned chest it concealed, she finished the look by zipping up the uniform only enough for it to fold outwards under his shirt's collar.

In her own opinion, biased though it may be, she was damn proud of her work. Such a minor alteration and Tsukune was able to keep the professional feel with a more casual demeanor. It was a given some of the members were going to change their uniforms a bit—within reason, as the headmaster had permitted—and she had to trust that theirs would turn out as well as his. That the headmaster allowed it at all was a statement more than anything; they wanted people to take the commission seriously, but they didn't want to come across as harsh as the original the Third Years would still remember. She was just glad Tsukune had a shirt that went so well with the gold-bordered uniform. At the time they had wanted it for him because the color went so well with his eyes, but right then it was just plain dumb luck.

"There. Much better, don't you think?"

He nodded numbly.

She giggled. "Want to see mine?"

After a quick trip to the gutter, his reply to that was much faster.

Tsukune slumped into his desk chair as Mizore sashayed into his bathroom to get ready, gifting him with a perfect view of her panty-clad posterior as she did. He had forgotten all about the multitude of uses she had for her ice puppets—getting her stuff when she didn't want to leave his side one of them. She could literally be in as many places as she needed to be at once.

_I wonder what that's like?_ He thought distractedly, and started terribly when he looked down at his hands and saw they had already transformed. _W-What the hell?'!_

It had been ages since it had just _happened_ like that; it was always a choice! They quickly morphed back under his direction, but he was suddenly doubly aware of everything that had only gotten louder to his senses since earlier. His skin crawled, his body eager to demonstrate the newfound control he felt over the slightest bit of moisture in the air; his mind itched to play with reality, lustful and, more importantly, infinitely conscious of the bonds his blood had already established. It was almost as if he could feel every beat of Rei's heart through his own, and Moka...Moka was a presence by herself if he actually looked for her.

With just the slightest bit of focus he could easily feel the blood-magic they had exchanged, and what was steadily growing between them because of it. He could tell how nervous she was, not to mention anxious, a bit scared, and, deep down, _proud_. In fact—and here he didn't know _what _to think—he was sure he could practically tell the difference between Outer and Inner during the exchange. And that was the thing, there was a _difference_. Not that he had ever doubted the two were very much their own people though restricted to the same body, it was just...he didn't know how to describe it. Though the vampire within soothed her outer self with her usual cool authority, he was able to get a clear, if not horribly blurred, impression of singularity. Less like multiple personalities, more like...twins.

Before the thought had too much time to germinate, however, his musings were interrupted when a shy voice hesitantly asked, "Well?"

His libido took one look at her, then the clock, and whimpered. Loudly.

Gone was the pleated miniskirt he was so used to seeing; the baggy sweatshirt that had always hidden her curves from view was nowhere to be found; in front of him stood a woman every bit as dangerous as the uniform she was wearing.

A slit black skirt as short as its predecessor just barely preserved her modesty while showing off creamy thighs toned to perfection, where the belt known to her style was securely tied to her left, just above the black and gray striped socks pulled over what had to be miles of leg. The black button-up was a given, but somehow she had managed to find one fitted almost exactly to her and yet still had sleeves long enough for her to hide her hands in the open cuffs. Coupled with the dark yellow vest buttoned enough to accentuate her bust and the unfastened collar, he never would have guessed she was wearing her usual sports-bra if he hadn't seen it minutes earlier.

He very nearly succumbed to his libido. God did he ever want to.

For her part, pale lips curved upwards over her lollipop as she noticed his 'discomfort', and she too had to fight off the desire his absolutely intense gaze was igniting in her. He made her feel positively radiant when he looked at her like that.

Purposefully letting her violet lashes hang low, she dragged the candy from her mouth in what was clearly an excruciating way to her lover, and just to make it worse, blew a gentle stream of frost over the glistening treat to keep it fresh before she deigned to meet his eyes. The thrill that shot up her spine made her weak in the knees when she did. She knew he wanted her, she would never be able to refute that after what he had shared with her, but _damn_ if it wasn't gratifying to see him so riveting on her form.

"What do you think?" she murmured lowly.

His response was to march over to her and pull her into a kiss so passionate she had to remember how to breathe when it was done.

"...Wow."

He grinned. "That's what I thought too."

Sometimes he was so sweet she felt like her heart would burst; this time her cheeks turned red. It was definitely time to move on, lest she get _distracted_ again. A distracted Mizore would soon equal a distracted Tsukune, which would inevitably equal the two of them distracted from their clothing, which would then equal time distracted from a total they didn't have to spare on this particular day. It was a good thing patience was one of her defining traits. Besides, bottling it up made the explosion later that much sweeter, and oh did she ever love those explosions.

"Come on, we've got to do something with your hair before the assembly," she said as she dragged him back to the washroom.

"My hair?"

She had to chuckle at the absolute cluelessness in his tone. "Tsukune, trust me." She loved how she only needed to say those two words and almost all of his reticence disappeared, but just to make sure... "Tell you what," she told him coyly, "you let me do your hair..." And as her voice quieted, she tugged him down so her cold lips were right next to his ear, "...I'll leave the biting to the _professionals._"

The young vampire licked his suddenly dry lips, exposing eager fangs as he did.

"Deal."

.

V^^^V

.

The assembly was well underway by the time the twosome snuck in the back entrance to the gym hall, as had been planned by the headmaster. It had been decided earlier on in the summer that having the students see anyone wearing the infamous regalia of the Safety Commission before the announcement would bring nothing but trouble, and as such a school-wide gathering had been formulated for the first day back. It would be coordinated by the homeroom teachers of each class as to make sure every student was accounted for, and though their classmates would no doubt notice certain people would be missing, it was still better than the alternative. A veiled threat from the Dark Lord masquerading as a school administrator had curbed the desire for the members themselves to blab about their new position, and those in third year knew enough about the potential response to keep from doing so regardless.

The twosome hadn't met anyone on the way in, and as they made their way into the waiting room behind the main stage they could see why. Everyone was already there and mingling, chatting excitedly in hushed whispers and showing off their new uniforms to their colleagues. Tsukune noted nearly all of them were evidently paired up even in the larger groups of conversation, and smiled. It looked like the mentorship program the school board had initiated—after more than likely being introduced by the Exorcist—was taking off just fine. They were a small faction compared to the whole school, numbering just over forty for an academy that boasted an average of six hundred, but then again the original hadn't been that large either, and most of the reason they kept so many 'offenders' was because said offenders hadn't agreed to cede to the unreasonable demands put on them.

Even so, it was a lot of names to learn, and neither Tsukune or Moka could reasonably say they knew everyone at a glance, even though they had been the ones going out to interview the members during the time the Newspaper Club had allotted themselves to work on formatting what had already been done. As the senior leaders, it was a foregone conclusion that they would be the ones building the first bridges, and it didn't hurt that many of the First and Second Years were enamored with Moka. He had gotten the strangest looks from some of the girls though...but he didn't pay too much attention to what they could mean. They had gotten it done with little fuss eventually, and it had been fun teaching Noriko and Isao the ropes of putting together a paper. He was confident they had gotten the copies ready for distribution the day before, but he regretted not being there to help.

A head of pink hair finally crossed his vision, and it came as no surprise that they found both Moka and Kurumu in what was easily the largest of the groups. The succubus was eating up the attention like she always did, happily chatting with the nervous but eager students around her, while Moka looked to be kindly offering her ear to those brave enough to talk to her. She was paler than normal, and clearly wasn't unaffected by what was going to happen, but was doing her level best to put up a strong front. Isao and Noriko were just off to their side, talking with Kokoa and adding their two cents every now and then, although the fair-haired Youko was also admirably brushing off the glares sometimes directed at her back.

Mizore wisely decided not to mention the sideways peeks Tsukune himself was beginning to receive once people noticed they had entered.

Tsukune wisely decided not to mention he was sure most of those looks were for _her_, but he did edge a bit closer to her side.

Of course, _everyone_ noticed them when Kurumu did, because she began to bounce up and down and made a run at him with his name on her lips. This time he was ready for her, and met her flying tackle with open arms—and wow, he had thought the looks some people were giving Noriko were bad; he could almost feel the hole being glared into him by the succubus' fans.

"G'morning, Tsukune!" she cheered happily, and smirked knowingly when she added a greeting to Mizore as he put her back on her feet.

Then her brain actually registered what it was seeing up close, and their replies fell on deaf ears.

Through the mad giggling she was doing in her head, there was only one thought: _Mama like!_

She walked around him slowly with her chin in hand, absorbing each and every detail with the scrutiny only a Succubus could give, while most of the men were content to absorb the sway of her gorgeous backside. The subtle call of attraction Kurumu knew well, a bestial siren song that appealed to the basest desires of man and monster alike, only grew in the air as her own heritage as a Nightwalker rose up to meet the delicious sensation her destined one was sending out. It was magic that wasn't magic, something so physical it bordered on the mystical, a combination of pheromones and pure bodily sexuality that she had long ago found out to be a result of her taking from his immense Youki stores. Since _he_ was the one displaying the signs now...it didn't take much for her to figure out what had happened.

Lending further support to that theory was that, if she was reading him correctly, she wasn't the only one picking up on those signals. Tsukune's breathing was becoming heavier by the moment, his hands clenching at his sides as he reacted to something most monsters couldn't even consciously percept as their wills clashed. The Charm of Succubae and Incubi was not so easily fought, and Kurumu had firsthand experience with having trouble controlling its intensity after the first time she had _fed_. Tsukune was obviously in the same boat. Men fidgeted and ladies squirmed, and not a few found themselves questioning their sexuality as their eyes fought between who to look at as the bluette finished her inspection with a decidedly lecherous grin.

"Oh Tsukune; oh Tsukune, Tsukune, _Tsukune_—what did you do now?"

Her lament might have been a bit more solemn had her eyes not been twinkling the entire time.

The brunet youth could only shrug apologetically, not even certain what it was he was apologizing _for_.

"And _you_," Kurumu drawled to her duet partner in a conspiratorial whisper, close enough to cut out any but the sharpest of ears, "You wouldn't happen to know why we walked to school in the _snow_ at the beginning of September, would you?"

As she expected, Mizore's lily-white flesh practically lit up with embarrassment, but the Snow Woman gave no answer. That was fine; she suspected it wasn't a story she wanted to hear around too many witnesses anyway, and there were definitely plenty of those. Her lovers _would_ be teased mercilessly, just at a later time. Judging from their expressions as she backed off, they knew that as well.

Twirling in place, she posed and cast a pout at the duo that would make models weep with envy. "Fine, be that way. Aren't you going to at least comment on _moi?_"

None of the comments that came immediately to mind were appropriate for polite company.

Black skirt molded sinfully to full hips, ornamented shirt—painfully similar to one once worn by a certain Spider Woman—filled to bursting; she was what criminals _wished_ they would be arrested by. It didn't help matters that the shirt had been adjusted for proper 'breathing room', or that the folded flap only brought more interest to her already impressive cleavage. The only things that stayed the same were her loose socks, but even they only added to her appeal.

Again, his libido was viciously squashed before it got him into trouble.

"It looks...good," he managed to choke out when he found his voice again. "Really, really good."

Her smile told him she knew _exactly_ what he was actually thinking, and he was glad for it in that instance. He couldn't really kiss her senseless like he had Mizore when everyone was looking at them, not when they all thought Moka was his _girlfriend_ girlfriend. It was safer that way, in any case. It was fortunate the kisses they had all showered him with after the confrontation at the dorm could easily be misconstrued into hugs from a distance. Even more fortunate was that many of their observers that day had stopped paying attention once the Valentine brothers had left, more focused on talking about what they had just seen, even if from far away.

Then again, it was entirely possible they _had_ seen and the whole ploy was moot. In their minds he had _been with_ the girls since first year, after all, so it wouldn't have been anything new. He preferred not to think of that one.

Still, better safe than sorry.

Apparently, Moka had decided it was a good time to remind their fellow students of that, because she walked straight up to him and pulled him down into a kiss so deep it took _everyone's_ breathes away.

"Good morning, Tsukune, Mizore," the vampiress stated with a serene smile when she was done.

"'Morning," the ice maiden replied in her usual manner, but her lips twitched in amusement at the scene around them. "I think you broke them."

Moka only had to glance around for the spectators to hastily recover their jaws from the floor and scramble back into their conversations. That accomplished, she turned back to Mizore, unassuming smile in place once more. For some reason it filled the blue-eyed beauty with dread.

Walking them over to an as of yet unused corner, and shooting a warning look to Isao and Noriko to stay away for the moment, the sealed vampiress stared them down and said two words. "What. Happened?"

Mizore hummed thoughtfully. "Well, when a man and woman love each other very much, and when that woman decides to wake the man up with a bl—"

"Why you little—! You took my idea!" Kurumu interrupted in disbelief, before she grinned widely and mimed wiping away a stray tear. "They grow up so fast. I'm so proud!"

The Snow Woman reddened, while Tsukune simply looked between the two with wide eyes.

Moka coughed in surprise, but despite her blush was every bit as serious as they had ever seen her. "No, you don't get it; I _felt you,_" she hissed. "I felt you _here_."

All three swallowed thickly when she put her hand over her heart. The meaning was clear.

They stayed like that for a long while, frightened jade irises staring into the brightest of blue, when unexpectedly Mizore's whole expression softened.

"You really did feel me, didn't you? You felt whatever it was Tsukune did."

When Moka nodded mutely, Kurumu's face lit with wonder. "You guys can feel each other's emotions with your bond, and a Succubus, um...Incubus, can siphon Youki from its source...and what is Youki but...oh my god...that's just...You were able to feel _that?_"

Moka just nodded again, and Mizore sighed wistfully. "I'm jealous. I only got to feel him for a few seconds, you get to feel him whenever you want."

"B-But..."

Any words the pinkette had prepared died with the rise of a violet eyebrow as the young woman opposite her crossed her arms. "I don't know what you're freaking out about. I already told you I loved you; didn't expect me to mean it or something?" she questioned blithely.

Tsukune would have laughed at the look his blood-mate was sporting if not for the situation. He could feel the confliction in her spirit, just as she must have felt some of his amusement from the brief glare she leveled at him. Behind that lay the same cluster of emotions that had once nearly knocked him from the sky, and he was warmed by the realization. It was a nonissue, and now he was determined to do something about it.

Closing his eyes, he concentrated on the thin string nearly visible to him so close to his blood-bound partner. His body trembled, wings and tail a hair's breadth from breaking free as he felt for the abilities borrowed from a Succubus, but he couldn't afford to let it happen. Literally—he'd never keep up with the uniform costs. The thing was, keeping it back was harder than he ever remembered it being. On the other hand, the imprint from Mizore was so fresh in his heart it was simple to call up the feelings, the beautiful snowstorm filled with anxieties and assurances, but strongest of all was love. Love for them. Not just for him, but for the family that had accepted the outcast, the stalker, the girl afraid to do more than just look. For the ones that had fought a whole society to save her from what would be a loveless marriage, and even death itself. The women in her life were just as important as the man, and he took that and he made sure Moka saw it for everything it was. Just as he loved more than just her, so did they love more than just him. It was virtually unavoidable in a relationship like theirs.

The vampiress suddenly had to clasp to Kurumu to keep herself upright as her knees buckled, and she stared at Tsukune in unmitigated astonishment.

He met her stare evenly, knowing that beneath the green, red eyes were just as curious.

"In a few minutes we're going to be standing in front of our entire school," he explained, gesturing at her outfit. Whereas the Black and White Duet had kept some semblance of the old PSC uniform, Moka had only kept hers to the bare bones. The tight ebony skirt hugged her proportions majestically, and above a belt of red beads she only wore a simple black blouse, unbuttoned at the throat for comfort and to allow space for her rosary. It was simplistic, beautiful, and entirely Moka.

He shot down the spike of desire, though from her reaction he could tell she still felt it. Unexpectedly, it calmed her.

"We're going to be put on display like one giant row of ducks in a shooting gallery, and I for one know that when I'm there I want to be able to think of my...my family," and what a feeling that was, to say it aloud, "and know that whatever goes down now or later, they'll be there for me. I have that, and I want all of you to have that same confidence. Don't worry about the little things, just give it time and see where it goes. I seem to remember someone once telling me we've got all of eternity before us, so don't rush yourself. If it's meant to happen it'll happen, at its own pace."

It was a quote that seemed so out of place considering all they had to do in such a short period, but in that and that alone they had time. Be it ten days or ten years, what they felt for each other needn't stay static.

No matter what, there was always room to grow.

Mizore could have kissed him right there.

It had the intended effect, as Moka's smile returned, stronger than ever. Even her skin regained some color, no longer overly pale with extra concerns only weighed down with the imminent exposure of the Safety Commission.

"Thank you," she said warmly, and Tsukune rubbed the back of his neck.

"Don't just thank me; I had some help. I would've been a wreck too if it wasn't for Mizore."

Kurumu tried and failed to hide her chortles under her hands. "If all of us could wake up like that I'm sure no one would _ever_ be nervous."

As Tsukune did a very good impression of a tomato, the violet-haired woman beside him just smirked. "Jealous much?"

"Hell no!" the succubus exclaimed, though not loud enough to bring any attention to their hushed chat. "I just can't wait for _my_ turn! Tsukune's always more open to doing things once he's had them shown to him."

The man they were talking about proved it was indeed possible to get redder than he already was, much to the bluette's delight, and she flat-out laughed at the color he turned when he noticed Mizore and Moka were contemplatively agreeing with what she had said.

Two could play at that game, and his libido was raring to participate after being denied so many times. If they wanted to play, he could play.

He gave them a second to revel in their victory, and more importantly to allow himself to recover, before he dipped into the charm of an Incubus. He damn near jerked at how strongly his body reacted, but it wasn't long before he had the desired result. The lust of a Vampire burned darkly in his caramel gaze as a smirk that made even Inner Moka shudder stretched on his lips, and his tone dripped with carnal promise only a demon born for it could conjure when a thoughtful hum rumbled up his throat.

"Should I show you what _Ruby's_ been teaching me?" he growled teasingly.

Revenge was sweet. Their expressions were _so_ much sweeter.

Then, for no reason readily apparent, Moka's eyes nearly tripled in size.

_"URA-CHAN!"_ she shrieked, skin brighter than her hair, and since she had momentarily forgotten no one else could see or hear the apparition of her unsealed self, she had inadvertently gained the confused stares of all but six people in the room. Naturally, this led to the Black and White Duet chuckling uncontrollably while Moka wished for the floor to swallow her whole, but thankfully Tsukune was able to wave off the reacquired interest with little difficulty.

What was more difficult was not laughing himself sick when he felt the unfettered glee radiating from what he knew had to be Inner Moka, because the other part was mortified beyond belief. He could only imagine what she had said to garner such a reaction, but he honestly prayed she would tell him when he unsealed her next.

Or, if she was feeling exceptionally generous, maybe she'd even _show_ him.

"Alright everyone, quiet down in here," a feminine voice ordered in good humor, where Ruby Toujou was revealed by the exit as if summoned by their previous comments.

The edgy energy of the occupants jumped to new levels with her appearance, for it meant only one thing.

It was time.

"We can do this," Tsukune whispered, his bluster gone, and squeezed the closest hand for reassurance. Mizore squeezed back gratefully.

Kurumu smiled softly, pleasantly surprised, when Moka followed their lover's example, and showed how much she appreciated it. Without warning, the vampiress found her other hand occupied by her sister's, and Kokoa's whole demeanor steeled when she felt the gesture returned.

"We can, and we're gonna show 'em that," the redhead declared quietly.

She turned away so quickly no one could tell, but Moka could have sworn pink dusted her cheeks when Tsukune smiled at her.

Like _that_ would happen.

Shrugging, she fell in step beside her bonded mate as the group as a whole moved to follow Ruby's instructions.

Down the path to where the rest of the school waited.

...

Out in the rows upon rows of chairs set out before the stage, seating hundreds of curious students, two among them had discovered boredom and mortal terror _could_ somehow go together. It could have even been funny, how Yukari and Rei shared in their family's anxiety as they simultaneously fought off yawns, listening to the headmaster list off the various announcements for the new semester, but it wasn't. It was agonizing, trying to sit still through the mind-numbing tedium _knowing_ there were bombshells yet to be dropped.

Finally, the Exorcist tapered off, hiding a small grin behind his cup as he took a drink and listened to the murmurs that broke out in the crowd. Some might think it petty of him to enjoy the small things in life, like messing with the heads of his students, but it was one of the few things that never got old. For someone like him, that was worth its weight in gold.

**"Yes, yes, I'm sure you're all wondering why this assembly was called if all I was going to do was repeat things you already know."** Throughout the multitude, people nodded, and he nodded with them. **"As this new term begins we also mark the beginning of what could become a new credit offered at this academy depending on its outcome, as well as the return of two concepts this school was once proud to have. It is my pleasure to announce that in two month's time, Youkai Academy will be welcoming back its alumni and your families for a school festival."**

The sudden outbreak of excited whispers was almost deafening, but it stopped within seconds of him raising his hand for silence.

**"Classes and clubs are encouraged to start their preparations as soon as they can, and there will be plenty of time permitted within school hours to prevent trouble in your studies. It only seems right to have it on Halloween, and we have decided to embrace the holiday like so many of you want to. In that regard, the student council has asked me to announce a costume competition free for any who wish to enter, but everyone is welcome and, in fact, advised to get in the spirit of things. Of course, I must remind everyone that it is to be **_**all**_** costume and in no part any kind of transformation."** Ah, how he enjoyed watching them become so animated to the simplest of things. Who would have thought monsters enjoyed dressing up as much as humans?

**"Now, the Third Years among us likely remember the last time a school festival was attempted, and what happened."** The nods then were distinctly more apprehensive, and he acknowledged them solemnly. **"It is for that reason that the school board and I have reinstituted an old program that fell that same year in the hopes that not only will their presence make you feel safer, but that they will also act as a deterrent against any potential problems that may arise from inside or outside the school.**

**"I'm sure some of you have noticed a lack of certain classmates or friends in homeroom this morning, and if not then you're noticing it now,"** he continued with a barely distinguishable smirk, as many sought out missing members they hadn't known were gone.

**"Once upon a time there was a role in this institution students strived for; they were secret-keepers and guardians both, the ones who above all had to be held to the high standards I expect from every single one of you. Sadly, they weren't. They took advantage of their peerless reputation and previously unquestioned authority and made their name synonymous with fear and hatred. A sad tale, isn't it?"**

As the dawning dread he had expected slowly started appearing, he smiled one of his infinitely creepy grins, the ones that spoke of untold experience and perverse gaiety all at once, like he couldn't wait for them to come to the conclusion of a puzzle he had finished long before. How he loved his job.

**"Ironically, they were brought to the staff's attention at the same time they were rendered leaderless. Like so many others of their kind, they grew too arrogant to realize the instability of their position and they paid for it at the hands of those they victimized."** He paused.** "You might remember reading about it."**

The offhanded comment was all it took for comprehension to light, and muted chuckles sounded in the audience as those that did realized the most prominent of those missing. He was quite pleased that there were at least some with more than just space between their ears.

**"I am speaking, of course, of the Public Safety Commission, or Student Police as they were coined. The staff and I were content to let you the students decide your own form of law enforcement, and it served its purpose, for a time. It was not a bad decision, merely one left untended. Make no mistake, this time they will answer to an authority higher than their peers. It will **_**not**_** happen again."**

He couldn't have said the words he _didn't_ say any louder even if he had shouted them.

A Dark Lord had spoken, and there was one authority watching the Commission.

_Me._

**"Well then, I think it's about time for introductions, isn't it?"**

The dark red curtain behind him rose, too slow for the inquisitive, too fast for the guarded, but rise it did, and eventually exposed a line of students dressed regally in variations of black and gold. Some faces weren't instantly recognized, some were, but almost everyone reacted in some way when they saw those who stood at the head of the line. Nearly the entire auditorium erupted into a sea of frenzied whispers, and the new Commission wasn't so optimistic as to think all of them were positive. To their relief, it didn't last long. With a simple motion for silence from the Exorcist, all but the most unobservant stopped within instants, and those that didn't got the hint fast enough.

No power was displayed, not in any grandiose sense, but the headmaster of Youkai Academy was a _presence_ unto himself, and not one to ignore.

He began the roll call from the back of the line, allowing each student to step forward and bow before moving on. Of course, Kurumu couldn't let the opportunity go by unexploited when it was her turn, and winked flirtatiously as she waved, which predictably drew a great many sighs from her admirers and an amused eye-roll from Yukari. Mizore's deadpan salute was perhaps the perfect follow-up, and had both the little witch and the dragoness snickering as quietly as they could despite the occasion.

Finally, only two remained to be called. **"...And the new leaders of the Public Safety Commission, Moka Akashiya and Tsukune Aono."**

The duo was quite pleased to note that while all applauded politely, there were actually some genuinely enthusiastic. Tsukune attributed that to Moka. He had it on good authority that her fan club had only gotten larger since First Year, but thankfully they were a lot more subtle in their appreciation than Kurumu's. 'Subtle' being a subjective term, unfortunately. It did have its useful moments, he could grant it that, as he looked out over their clapping peers.

**"Now, before I let our young friends over here say a few words, I do have one more announcement to make. In line with the reformation of the Safety Commission and the festival coming up, the school has made plans to get rid of the old structures littering the grounds. To that end, we will be in the company of a construction and landscaping service until the end of Fall, and they have graciously allowed us to establish a work-experience course for our students over that time."**

The response was anticipated, and it didn't disappoint. Too bad the headmaster didn't even give them time to get going, he just spoke over them, and _no one_ was brave enough to continue over _that_.

**"Depending on interest only a certain number of locations will be worked on, and if all goes well the board may consider expanding the project into later years, possibly with a focus on individual trades for those looking to specialize in the job market. For the time being, each group will be overseen by their own site manager, and you should treat them exactly how they are meant to be treated. You can and **_**will**_** be let go if they find your behavior unsatisfactory, and they would much rather pay people who **_**want**_** to be there."**

He went on to explain that yes, they would be paid, about the landscaping suggestions and their hopeful inclusion in the festival, and the grade requirements to keep on working once accepted. Only after those things had been clarified did he go into the restrictions placed on the PSC and their format as compared to their predecessor, then eventually finished with a recap of the most important rules the Commission was there to enforce.

It didn't take long, but to the bonded pair enduring the curious and-or mistrustful glances of the whole student body, it felt like hours. In a way, they were both glad for it though. They had known they would be expected to speak at the 'unveil', and though they didn't plan to say anything original, they wanted to say it right.

Then that creepy, all-knowing grin was set on them, and they had to resist the shudders crawling down their spines even as they stepped forward to face the proverbial firing squad.

They had always been in big situations; scenarios which, if not life or death, involved a much bigger balance to maintain. They had been at the heart of a plot that could have thrown the world itself into disarray, and now as they stood before the generation they had helped keep out of what would have become the biggest war the planet had ever seen, all of that meant nothing.

Moka gripped the podium, her sweaty palms slick on the smooth wood as she licked her lips and tried to steady her nerve.

"I..." her voice cracked, and she hung her head as the sound echoed through the auditorium.

It was like something out of her nightmares. Everyone was looking at her, waiting on her, and she failed where her inner self would have flourished. Even as the disembodied spirit of that self voiced disagreements and tried to soothe her shattered sense of worth, the uncertainty was crushing.

What she forgot was she wasn't the only one who could feel that. Tsukune nearly staggered at the intensity of his fellow leader's panic, but honestly he had been expecting it. So, he shoved aside his own fear and put his newfound perception towards their bond to good use. If he was going to be the blood-mate, the _husband_ she needed him to be, then by God he wasn't going to let her down in something so simple. She was beautiful, she was confident, she was everything the people in front of her could ever hope to be and _she could do this._ He merely reminded her of that.

When her head rose, the eyes that shone through candy-colored bangs burned with emerald fire.

"...I hate this uniform."

The students...stared. They had never heard Moka Akashiya speak like that before, her voice so full of grief and disgust it could be _felt_ even in the softness of her declaration. It had been meant to get their attention. It worked.

"The headmaster can talk all he wants about how...how _different_ this time is supposed to be, but let's face it, everyone who's in their third year here will have bad memories of a group that went by our name. Police? _Safety_ Commission? Ha! Our old sempai referred to them as _yakuza!_" she spat, and many winced. "You know what's really funny though? Everyone _thought_ they were bad, their reputation gave them that much, but only...only some of us really know _how bad_. Four of us up here have been in the Newspaper Club since we started as freshman, and out of all of you, even those in our year, whether you're...whether you've actually seen what the old Commission did up close, or, or even if you're just scared of what you've been told or what you'll _be_ told, I can tell you _we_ hate what we're wearing just as much as you do." She pondered that, and a rueful smirk crossed her lips. "No...no, I'm pretty sure I can guarantee you we hate it more.

"The Newspaper Club had a history with the Public Safety Commission we didn't even know about until they came by stomping our stand because...because they didn't _approve_ of what we had written first. It wasn't the first time they had done it either; they had destroyed the Newspaper Club the year before, but our sempai Gin believed in it enough to keep it going. We did the same thing they had done, we stood up to them, and then they...they made up some charges and they didn't plan to silence us, they were going to _kill us._"

The power of Moka's personality was such that none even _considered_ that what they were being told might be an exaggeration. It wasn't, and they knew it wasn't, because the truth could be seen in every shadow that passed over her face, every pause for composure, and the fact that not a single thing she said was being read from a prewritten script. This wasn't a story, this was a recitation of memories.

And she wasn't done yet. "I want you to picture your best friend; they don't have to be here, they can be a sibling or someone from home, but I want you to get their image in your mind. Do you have it?" As if on strings, the listeners nodded. "Okay. Now, I want you to imagine that you're fighting for your life, and you're losing, you're...you're not just losing, you're...you're going to die. You know you have no way to survive because of things you...you can't control, but there's one thing that could be done, and, and only your friend can do it. H—" No, she had to remind herself. Not 'he', not personal; it was for them. Forget, but bring them in. It was as hard as it sounded. Nonetheless, she carried on after a deep breath, more determined than ever. "They know it too, you can see it in their eyes, but...but your best friend has been beaten so badly they can't even move." There were flinches all around. "Now think, 'what could make this worse'? What could be done to make your lives even more miserable before the end? Well, imagine the person beating your friend to death knows the only thing more important to them than their own life is _you_."

The flinches were stronger that time, and Tsukune's knuckles turned white at his sides.

No one noticed when it stopped being imaginary and took on a life of its own inside their minds. To them, Moka's words simply started playing out, bringing visions of cruel laughter and heart-clenching torment. Despair previously unknown felt impossibly genuine, dust and the lingering scent of sulfur thick in their noses as they struggled to see through a haze of tear-stained pain. It was _their_ friends being hurt, _them_ being persecuted. They would have cried out, but they had no words to speak.

But then again, only a few could even guess at what a Succubus' illusions were capable of.

"So, what do they decide to do but make your friend watch you die first," she continued bitterly. "Then, fire's rushing at you, so hot you can feel it on your skin, but then your...your friend _proves_ you mean more to them than their own life—they jump in the way. They save you, free you, even though they're as...restricted, _sealed_ as you are and weaker than you've ever been. Now you have the power you need, but...they're..." The podium creaked ominously under her grip. "Imagine that. It's a gamble at best to try and save them, but if you could, you would do it, wouldn't you? You do what you need to, and then you turn on your tormentor with the stink of...of your best friend's burning flesh clinging to you."

It was too much. Too real. Tsukune had been hurt before, but that was the first time she had ever truly feared he would never come back to her. They had been through so much since then, but not even the damage he had taken at Alexander's hands could compare to when he lay, blackened and broken, clutching the key to her salvation in his charred hand. It hurt more to remember he didn't know how she felt back then, and had he died she never would have been able to tell him. She would never forgive Kuyou for what he had done, and what he had almost taken from her.

Spellbound, even some teachers found themselves overwhelmed by the images being provided to them.

"Every time you think of what we _could_ be, I want you to think of that and know why we're going to do everything in our power to make sure we are _never_ like the _yakuza_ who used our name."

The trance was broken with those words, and there were hardly any who weren't left trying to recover and wiping away tears for an account that—to them—had never happened.

Kurumu just gaped at Tsukune's back, speechless.

Not many noticed the look that passed between the two leaders, or how he brushed her hand gently as she moved to let him take point, but they noticed _him_. Like Moka, he carried a weight about him that was impossible to ignore, and even those in the farthest rows could tell something had changed in him over the summer. His hair was longer, for one, and styled around his face in a mane of sloping spikes unlike anything he had done before, and yet traces of the old could still be seen in it. From his eyes, to his skin, to his very stance, everything about him seemed to scream warning to their instincts, but those warnings were so easy to disregard when they were tempered by the gentleness he displayed in every aspect of his being. Right then, that gentleness was tempered by sadness, and when he spoke, his voice was raw.

"I'm sure there are more stories like that out there, without the ending ours had. We weren't the only ones who suffered under them, but we were the last, and we're here to make sure we _stay_ the last. We're not going to, to enforce made-up rules or make stupid punishments for them; we're here to protect the safety of everyone here and help you all have the best year you can.

"We aren't going to force you to wear your uniforms the right way; we aren't going to stop your club activities if you stick to the regulations. You wanna fight? Fight. Just be ready for us to get involved. Want to bully or humiliate someone? You'll have a problem with us. Transform for no reason? We'll be there. For some of us this'll be the last year we have here, then we're on to university in the human world, jobs...just, just _life_. The human world has...it has so much to offer, and we have so much to offer _it_. I don't want anyone to ruin their chance there by acting impulsively and paying the price.

"We can do this. We can do _so_ much for both our worlds, and I...I want to be able to look back and know I wasn't the only one that found something special while I was here in this one. Most of all, I want to come back here in a few years and see people that found something special in _that_ one. We have a...a _responsibility_ to all those that'll come after us, so something like Fairy Tale never happens again."

There was mixed reaction to that, but Tsukune took heart in the nods outweighing the naysayers. Fairy Tale had messed up a lot of monster's lives in their rise, not just human ones. They tended to deal with those that disagreed with their ideals much the same as they would with humans, period.

He let Moka back to center stage to finish it off.

"By the way, the school newspaper will stay running even though we're doing this too. We've changed our operations a bit just in case anyone's worried about our..._values_. The headmaster's aide, Ruby Toujou, has been our assistant advisor for a couple of years now, and she'll be taking a bigger role with Nekonome-sensei to go over our papers before they're published. That's a _direct line_ to the headmaster himself if we go overboard."

And there Tsukune needed to lean over her shoulder to add in their own little announcement. "Oh, and the Newspaper Club will always come first to us, so if we're ever accused of that and it's actually true, we'll quit this. End of story," Tsukune declared with fake cheer, much to the Exorcist's amusement.

Sometimes the kid could mess with his students just as good as _he_ could. That was even more entertaining than him doing it himself!

Those illusions though...

He returned to the limelight as they stepped away, perhaps inadvertently joining their hands as they did so. Like he could resist such an opening. **"Let's have a round of applause for our new Public Safety Commission,"**he insisted, and the multitude obliged him with surprising enthusiasm. **"Though I would like to remind the leaders that displays of affection are best done in a more private setting. Otherwise your first acts might end up being against yourselves."**

Then _everyone_ was looking at their joined hands.

Tsukune cast narrowed eyes at the headmaster, then seemed to think of something and swiveled his head to Mizore, whom cocked an eyebrow inquisitively. Then he grinned. It was small, but it was there.

And it reminded the headmaster so much of his own he raised an eyebrow as well.

That was when Tsukune Aono took Moka Akashiya and kissed her in front of the whole of Youkai Academy.

It wasn't a light kiss either, it was a deep, fully-reciprocated tongue-tangle that went on until the reignited applause and cat-calls had reached an all-time high. Oh there were plenty of murderous glares, but at least there Tsukune knew he deserved them.

When they parted, the look both Moka and her rosary pinned on him could have aroused the dead.

God had that felt good.

With a polite bow to his school's administrator, he retook his blood-mate's hand. "Guess I'll have plenty of time to answer any questions anyone might have while I'm helping the janitor then. Shall we go?"

That said, the two led the way for the rest of the Commission to follow, leaving snickering spectators in their wake. It was, by and large, the best showing the new PSC could have hoped for, even if it was completely improvised.

The headmaster could only chuckle. Yes, he could see the coming years being _interesting_ indeed.

...

When they were finally alone after the many back-slaps and congratulations Tsukune received from their fellow members backstage, the young Vampire looked at Mizore and smiled triumphantly.

"Crazy enough for you?"

She just smiled back. "You're learning well, apprentice."

Kurumu _and_ Moka's eyes lit up, while Kokoa groaned quietly. Those old talks around snacks and pillows had seemed so innocent at the time.

Naturally, the bluette had to grab the startled Blood Sage and kiss him senseless.

"...But you are not a master yet," the succubus preened.

A pleasant tingle shot through him when he saw Moka's normally innocent grin filled with fangs.

Oh yes, they could live with that.

_**After all, practice makes perfect,**_ Inner Moka thought hungrily.

And there would be practice.

Lots and _lots_ of practice.

V^^^V

.


End file.
